


the butterfly effect

by Milliaswan



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Back to elementary school, Boku dake ga inai machi AU, Find the killer, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Saving Oikawa, Time Travel, Traumatic childhood memories, With more magical butterflies, changing the future
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-12
Updated: 2017-04-11
Packaged: 2018-07-14 14:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 68,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7175621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Milliaswan/pseuds/Milliaswan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>Iwaizumi looked down at his hands, registering their small size for the first time, the small still-healing scrapes that had not been there previously, and the darker, tanned skin tone that had originally faded over the years from lack of sun exposure. He looked towards the school building, and the long, flowing white banner in the middle which proudly read “Congratulations to the volleyball team for making the 2004 Nationals!”. And then back towards Oikawa Tooru, who looked very much alive. Back towards the banner. 2004. A jubilant moving Oikawa. His small, child-like hands, what was going on, </i>what was going on-</p><p>Or a Boku dake ga inai machi AU no one asked for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. (2014) Hollow

> _“Nee-chan promised to pick me up and show me something special today! You worry too much, Iwa-chan, just go,” Oikawa grinned, attempting to pull his alien-patterned beanie further down to cover his ears but failing, the mass of brown hair on his head causing the beanie to slide back up each time._
> 
> _Iwaizumi held back a snort as Oikawa tried not to shiver in the cool air, giving him a light punch in the arm, as the tree branches nearby swayed slightly with the wind. “If you insist, Shittykawa.”_
> 
> _“Mean as usual,” Oikawa pouted as Iwaizumi smiled, moving towards his mum, who was standing by the school gates with her usual look of amusement at the antics of the two boys, the Iwaizumi family car sitting behind her._
> 
> _“Don’t complain about getting sick when you’re the one choosing to stay out here!” Oikawa pulled his tongue out at Iwaizumi in response._
> 
> _“Says the one who was in bed all weekend because he caught the flu!”_
> 
> _Iwaizumi let Oikawa have the last word as he reached the car, leaping into the warmth it offered. He looked out through the window once the door was closed, where Oikawa was waving his gloved hand in farewell, mouthing words that Iwaizumi knew said “Bye, Iwa-chan!”_
> 
> _Iwaizumi kept staring at Oikawa, attempting to look as displeased as possible, but deep down enjoying the antics of his best friend. He kept staring until his mum started the engine and starting driving, Oikawa fading from his sight._
> 
> _That was the last time that Iwaizumi Hajime saw Oikawa Tooru alive, and it would be a memory that haunted him for the next ten years._
> 
> _What if Iwaizumi had forced Oikawa to go home with him that day?_

Iwaizumi waited anxiously outside the entrance of the library, staring as the second hand of his watch ticked closer to twelve. He gripped the handle of his backpack tightly, trying not to overthink the situation that he was about to throw himself into. He reminded himself that yes, he was a 3rd year maths major at Tokyo University, one of the most prestigious universities in Japan, that he had successfully looked over the content he was going to run through today, and no, he definitely was _not_ going to be surprised by any ten-year-old in his area of speciality. Definitely not.

Iwaizumi clung firmly onto this belief, repeating it as a mantra several times in his head as a young boy with a fully shaved head and his tall, stern faced father beside him carrying a briefcase approached him. He could do this. He willed himself to remember the determination he had when he set his New Year’s resolutions, vowing to try new things, interact with people, and actually enjoy his life. He could not keep wallowing in the emptiness that he had let take over at the start of middle school, an emptiness he still wasn’t sure of the origins of. How tutoring ten-year-olds for a decent sum of money fell directly into his resolutions Iwaizumi was not one hundred percent certain, but it was something new he was doing, and at least he was using his social skills to interact with someone, even though they may have been just a kid he was tutoring.

“Iwaizumi-san?” Iwaizumi released his grip from the handle of his backpack, looking away from his watch and acknowledging the father as he approached him with a slight nod.

“And you are Yamada-san?” Iwaizumi asked for confirmation, breathing deeply to ease his nerves.

"Correct." Iwaizumi and Yamada bowed to each other in greeting, the child next to Yamada also bowing shyly. “As discussed in our phone conversation earlier, this is my son Takeru, who is in need of a hand in maths right now. Takeru, this is Iwaizumi-sensei.”

Iwaizumi noted the grimace on Takeru’s face as he was introduced and made eye contact with Iwaizumi for the first time. “Pleasure to meet you, Iwaizumi-sensei.” His voice was less than enthusiastic, as a small part of Iwaizumi cringed inside from a challenge he was now anticipating.

Yamada pulled out an A4-sized yellow envelope from the briefcase he was carrying, handing it to Iwaizumi. “These are Takeru’s maths exams from last year. Please go over them, as well as well the initial grade 6 content we discussed on the phone. Drop Takeru back home at the address I have specified in my message in time for dinner around seven pm. Does this work for you, Iwaizumi-san?”

“Yes it does, Yamada-san. Your son is in good hands with me.” Iwaizumi took the envelope from Yamada, grateful it was not extraordinarily thick. Yamada turned his attention back to Takeru.

“Make sure you study hard and listen to Iwaizumi-sensei, Takeru. I will not tolerate your nonsense for much longer.” The second sentence was said in a threatening whisper, intended for Takeru’s ears only, and Iwaizumi did his best to pretend that he didn’t hear, feeling awkward. Yamada left without a word, leaving Takeru standing awkwardly in the middle of the pathway leading to the library entrance.

Iwaizumi approached Takeru, mentally running through the best possible ways to establish a suitable teacher/student relationship with him. He settled for getting Takeru as comfortable as possible with him, motioning for Takeru to follow him into the library, who did so quietly. Iwaizumi led Takeru to the back of the library, where he opened the door to a private room that he had booked earlier.

“Come in, Takeru,” Iwaizumi invited, as Takeru stood awkwardly at the entrance. “I’m not as scary as I look.” Iwaizumi did his best to look as unintimidating as possible by giving Takeru a joking smile as he took off his backpack, for once thankful he was not ridiculously tall. There wasn’t much he could do to hide the outline of his arm muscles visible through his coat, having been too lazy to get a replacement coat despite the fact that the one he wore was continuously getting tighter.

Takeru let out a soft laugh, his blank face changing for the first time since Iwaizumi met him. He walked into the room, closing the door behind him and sat down in the free seat next to Iwaizumi. He seemed to have relaxed further at the sight of Iwaizumi’s backpack, where a small Godzilla key chain hung from the zipper. Iwaizumi pulled out the maths papers from the envelope, lying them on the table, then bent over to his backpack where he pulled out a maths textbook. Turning to Takeru, he motioned to the two piles on the desk with his hands.

“What do you feel like first? If we get through the explanations quickly enough we can go grab a snack together before working on more problems.”

Takeru’s eyes lit up at the mention of food, Iwaizumi silently applauding his bribery strategy to both motivate and get Takeru comfortable with him. “You’re not as boring as I thought for someone dad picked.” Takeru picked up the pile of maths papers and handed them to Iwaizumi. “Let’s go.”    

After about two hours of diligent tutoring with Takeru, where his fears of total disobedience were laid to rest as Takeru listened closely and learnt from his mistakes, Iwaizumi felt his stomach growl, hearing a corresponding growl from Takeru several seconds later. They both laughed, careful to keep the volume down.

“Would you be up for a quick snack?” Iwaizumi asked, petting his coat pockets to ensure his wallet was safely secured.

“Anything?” There was a hopeful lilt to Takeru’s question as he laid the pencil he was using down onto the desk.

“Within reason.” Takeru looked as if he wanted to pout, before his expression brightened up.

“The McDonalds down the road! Is that ok? Dad normally never lets me go there.”

Iwaizumi weighed up the relative pros and cons to taking his student to an unhealthy, fast food outlet that clearly had been avoided by their parents, before deciding that one burger wouldn’t hurt. Ignorance is bliss, so they say, and Takeru’s enthusiasm was contagious.

“Yeah, that works.” Takeru raised his fists in celebration.

“Thank you Iwaizumi-sensei! Actually, you’re pretty cool…can I call you Iwa-sensei instead?”

Iwaizumi stiffened, feeling an odd sense of déjà vu, echoes from the past reverberating through his mind.

_“Iwa-chan! Iwa-chan! Did you see the alien special? Iwa-channnnn!”_

Iwaizumi was lost in his thoughts for several seconds before registering Takeru’s grinning face. He didn’t have the heart in him to decline, and forced himself away from the thoughts currently distracting him. Tutoring and getting out was his new resolution for a reason. It was time to stick to it and stop worrying about things that could not be changed.

“Not in front of your parents.” That was the closest to a yes that Iwaizumi was willing to concede to Takeru. Takeru’s smile grew even wider, revealing that he was missing one of his front teeth.

After a quick clean-up of their workspace, where Takeru insisted on bringing his backpack along, Iwaizumi and Takeru left the stuffy atmosphere of the library and took in deep breaths of the cooler air that surrounded them. They moved out of the quiet lane where the library resided, and onto the louder, bustling main road where the McDonalds was located.

Takeru walked alongside Iwaizumi, grinning at the prospect of a snack and accidentally whacking Iwaizumi with his backpack in his excitement. Iwaizumi made sure he moved and walked on Takeru’s right, subconsciously feeling the need to place himself as a barrier between the busy main road to the right, and the joyfully grinning child to his left. With every car that drove past Iwaizumi could feel his coat flapping against his leg. He was also aware of the tell-tale signs of an argument coming from a group of teenagers standing fairly closely to the edge of the road, and Iwaizumi could not keep the scowl off his face as he walked past. Takeru too could not resist a curious second glance at the group, where the noise from the argument had risen past a generally accepted level, however a quick look ahead revealed a distant McDonalds sign about fifty metres away, quickly stealing back his focus.

“Iwa-sensei, I see it!” he yelled, grabbing Iwaizumi’s wrist and attempting to pull him forward. Iwaizumi stumbled slightly, noticing the sign and fully focusing his attention on Takeru, away from the faint sounds of the bickering teenagers behind him.

“One burger _only_ ,” Iwaizumi said firmly, making sure that Takeru did not run too far ahead of him. There was a challenging look in Takeru’s eyes that Iwaizumi did not like, before his attention was drawn to a faint crackling noise that sent shivers of déjà vu down his spine. Stopping suddenly, Iwaizumi frantically tried to take in as much of the scenery as he could, trying to identify the trigger for the Revival about to happen, registering the faint sound of screaming and the sudden absence of traffic beside him before-

A glowing turquoise butterfly fluttered lazily to his right, leaving behind a faint trail of what looked to be turquoise glitter. Iwaizumi felt his entire body go numb for a second, before blinking and finding himself approximately one hundred metres further up the street. He didn’t have any time to react before Takeru’s backpack slammed into his chest, with Takeru too caught up in his excitement to notice. _Revival. Not again._

Revival was the constant, unwanted companion stuck by Iwaizumi’s side that forced him to act when in reality, he just wanted to mind his own business. The first time it happened, Iwaizumi truly believed that he had gone insane. Over a decade of practice later, Iwaizumi had the clear next steps of actions imprinted into his brain, scanning his surroundings for anything that looked out of place. 

“Iwa-sensei?”

“Takeru, is there anything that looks out of place to you?” Iwaizumi stopped walking, Takeru turning back curiously at the question.

“Out of place?” Iwaizumi realised his question had been a bit vague as he continued scanning his surroundings, his heartbeat racing at the prospect of the event he knew would imminently occur if he did not prevent it. 

“Something that could cause an accident maybe?” Takeru started scanning his surroundings, still looking confused. Takeru’s attention was drawn to the loud noise of an argument between a group of teenagers down the road. He waved to get Iwaizumi’s attention, before pointing towards the group.

“They’re being really loud. I don’t think they should be that loud right?”

Iwaizumi remembered walking past that same group the first time, and giving them a scowl, both from the noise they were making, and their proximity to the edge of the road. As he looked closer, he noticed one of the taller teenagers involved in the argument, distinctive by his red jumper, moving his arms madly as he yelled. This could be it.

Iwaizumi started running down the footpath, dodging the people in his way if possible, as Takeru behind him struggled to keep up. As Iwaizumi started making out a few fragments of the heated discussion going on, the teenager with the red jumper made his wildest swing yet, his target, a shorter teenager with short spiked hair, leapt backward to avoid it-

“WATCH OUT!” Iwaizumi yelled, drawing the gaze of onlookers and cutting the argument short, as the spiked hair teenager fell directly into the path of an oncoming car. The sickening crunch of the teenager colliding with the bonnet of the car drew the attention of all nearby bystanders, as the teenager was thrown into the air, and into the path of another passing car. The sudden squeal of brakes highlighted the awareness of drivers to the accident, but it was obvious that the damage had already been done. Hit by two cars moving at the speed limit, Iwaizumi did not need to approach any further to know that the spiked hair teenager was dead, lying in a pool of his blood.

The screams started, panicked bystanders moving rapidly and shoving Iwaizumi roughly against the crowd. Iwaizumi’s eyes were drawn to the fallen teenager, chest heaving and tight from the sudden loss of life. But it was a scene that was not completely unfamiliar with him, and this time when he heard the crackling behind him and saw the flash of turquoise, Iwaizumi embraced the immobilising numbness that spread throughout his body.

He was back at the start of the loop again, Takeru’s backpack slamming forcefully into his chest again. Iwaizumi acted immediately, firmly grabbing Takeru’s wrist as the boy let out an exclamation of surprise, and walked directly towards the loud group of teenagers bickering down the road.

“Iwa-sensei?” Takeru exclaimed in shock, stumbling against the crowd as he kept up with Iwaizumi. Iwaizumi threw him his most serious expression, Takeru closing his mouth in surprise, as Iwaizumi walked straight into the group of arguing teenagers.

“What’s going on here?” Iwaizumi demanded, tilting his head slightly, putting on his best practiced scowl, and thankful for the hours at the gym that gave him enough muscles to pass for intimidating if required. The teenager with the red jumper looked at Iwaizumi with a disdainful look, eyes passing over Takeru standing nervously behind Iwaizumi, and smirked.

“This is none of your business, _daddy_ ,” he sneered, looking back at the spiked hair teenager with amusement and anger, before suddenly throwing a roundhouse punch. It was as if time moved in slow motion. Iwaizumi knew that the spiked hair teen would dodge by stepping backward, not realising that he was already standing on the edge of the footpath. Iwaizumi lunged forward, ignoring the sudden gasp of surprise from the other teenagers around him, and grabbed the first body part that flailed in front of his face. He pulled the spiky haired teen forward towards the footpath, just as the same car that had previously hit him the first time whizzed by.

The car disappeared as quickly as it came, another car following closely behind it. The group of teenagers looked at the road with shock, with both the red jumper and spiked hair teenagers staring with particularly wide eyes. They both knew what would have happened had Iwaizumi not reached out and pulled the teenager away from the road.

“Kirihata, sorry, I didn’t mean to-” The look on the teenager’s face morphed into one of apology, body tense.

“Just leave it,” the spiked hair teenager panted out, slowly pulling himself up from his fallen position on the footpath. “We’re good, ok?” Iwaizumi stepped back, intending to leave with his role in this incident over, but the spiked hair teenager grabbed his shoulder.

“Thanks, I don’t know what would’ve happened otherwise.”

Iwaizumi stared down at the group, disapproval clear on his face. “Don’t argue about stupid things, and particularly don’t do it next to the road!”

The teenagers nodded silently, shuffling away from the edge of the road, their original argument forgotten as they realised how off track their discussion had gone. With a final nod, and bows in some cases, the teenagers left, walking in the opposite direction to the McDonalds that had been Iwaizumi’s original goal.

“You’re so cool, Iwa-sensei. Just saving the guy like that, BAM!” Takeru mimicked the pulling motion that Iwaizumi had pulled when saving the spiked hair teenager, as Iwaizumi motioned for him to keep walking. “Your face was scary too!”

“I didn’t have much choice, Takeru,” Iwaizumi replied, thoughts slightly lost as he recalled previous instances of preventing fatal events. A gas leak at a party. Overcrowding at a train station. Even a case of child abduction once. Preventing a simple stumble onto a road was probably one of the easier things he had encountered lately, but it was not something he was going to admit out loud to Takeru. “Let’s just get our snacks from McDonalds, alright?”

“I want a Big Mac!”

Iwaizumi felt himself smile again. Hanging out with cheerful people was definitely contagious.

On arrival at McDonalds, Iwaizumi motioned to Takeru to find a free table, before walking to the nearest queue and waiting to place their orders. He returned several minutes later to the sight of Takeru nearly bouncing off his seat in excitement, eyeing the burgers and fries sitting on the tray that Iwaizumi was carefully manoeuvring to their table. 

"Is that my Big Mac?" Iwaizumi resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he handed the burger over to Takeru, who unwrapped and attacked it without a second thought. Grabbing and unwrapping his own Big Mac, Iwaizumi was content to eat in silence, watching Takeru eat with a sense of amusement. He wondered what it would be like to have a younger sibling to look after, to spoil, and to take onto McDonalds runs.

“Thank you.” It was soft, and compared to the excited sentences that Takeru let out earlier, serious.

Iwaizumi stopped mid-chew, looking back at Takeru curiously. “For what?” he asked around a mouthful of food.

Takeru gently dropped the scrunched up Big Mac wrapper on the tray, burger fully consumed. “For this. And being cool. You remind me of my real mum. She would take me out to McDonalds sometimes after school.”

Iwaizumi swallowed the remainder of the food in his mouth, suddenly feeling on edge from the turn the conversation was taking. He took a sip from the cup of Coke he had ordered with his meal to soothe his suddenly dry throat.

“Your real mum?” he blurted out against his better instinct. He had seen the tension between Takeru and his dad, and did not expect at the time to be engaged in discussion about it.

“She lives in Miyagi.” Takeru picked up the discarded Big Mac wrapper, only to drop it down on the tray again. Iwaizumi was startled by the name of the city that he had grown up in, and promptly left at the first opportunity. “Sometimes she gets so sad that she locks herself in that room upstairs and doesn’t come down for a few days, but other times we have so much fun, just me, mum, grandma.”

Iwaizumi grabbed one of the remaining French fries, using it as a distraction to maintain his neutral expression. He thought back to his childhood in Miyagi, ten years ago, to any whispers he had heard about new babies being born. There had been one, just one that he recalled, and that was because the bearer of the news had wasted no opportunities in telling Iwaizumi about how he was going to be the best uncle in the world soon. 

“After grandma fell down the stairs, they said mum couldn’t look after me alone, and contacted my dad.” At this Takeru frowned, poking the Big Mac wrapper around the tray with his finger. “And now I’m stuck alone in Tokyo, and he hasn’t let me see mum in ages.”

Iwaizumi stayed silent, unable to speak. Part of his thoughts had gone back into the past he avoided thinking about, to the days when things were simpler, were happier. To the genuine laughter that surrounded Iwaizumi, to the whining that seemed never ending, but also to the clear determination that lit a fire to anyone that met with it. Just like Takeru, it seemed that Iwaizumi had lost an important part of himself back in Miyagi, but unlike Takeru, it was permanent. The dead stayed dead, no matter how much one screamed, or prayed, something that Iwaizumi was forced to confront at a young age.

“He even made me change my name, Iwa-sensei, my name!” Takeru flicked the wrapper off the table in annoyance, watching absently as it rolled weakly across the floor. “It would’ve been annoying if you called me Yamada-kun because sometimes I don’t even realise that my classmates were talking to me, but you didn’t.”

Iwaizumi was drawn back to reality by Takeru’s ever increasing tone, and the serious and frustrated look in his eyes a ten-year-old should not need to use. Now would have been the best time to conclude their snack time, and walk back to the library and finish off what needed to be done, but there was one question on Iwaizumi’s mind that he needed to ask, a question that he could not just ignore. There was something he needed to confirm to ease his raging thoughts.

“What was your name?”

"My name is-” Takeru paused, eyes determined, boring into Iwaizumi’s. “-Oikawa Takeru. It's a pleasure to meet you." It was with a tone of satisfaction, but with an undertone of sadness that Takeru replied, bowing his head as if he had just met Iwaizumi for the first time, and feeling it could be the last time he was ever able to introduce himself to someone with that name.

Iwaizumi’s heart clenched, suspicions confirmed. Takeru was living, breathing evidence of the consequences that occurred because Iwaizumi that cold winter’s day, had not forced his best friend to come into the car with him. Because Iwaizumi had left him waiting there alone, by the school gates. Iwaizumi had been the last person to see him alive, and became the first to find him dead.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too,” Iwaizumi found himself saying finally, an automatic response to introductions, mind lost hundreds of kilometres away, attempting to escape from the memories that tried to swarm his mind. “I think it’s time we headed back.”

Takeru nodded in agreement, cleaning up their meal from McDonalds. It was with a subdued, but determined mood that they both worked through the content that had to be completed by the seven pm deadline, Takeru occasionally taking the initiative when Iwaizumi got too lost in his thoughts. With the content successfully covered by six-thirty, Iwaizumi had an easy thirty minutes to get Takeru back home, grabbing his stationary and textbook and roughly shoving it into his bag.

"All packed?" Iwaizumi asked, giving the library room one look. Despite the conversation earlier in the afternoon that gave Iwaizumi one too many reminders of his childhood, he also felt light, lighter than he had in a long time. Iwaizumi came to the realisation that he had enjoyed the tutoring session with Takeru, enjoyed going through the maths and showing someone else how to enjoy the subject. Maths had always been an enjoyable subject, a clean escape, and it didn’t let him down, even when his role had swapped from student to teacher. Would he be willing to keep teaching the kid? For sure.

“I’m done,” Takeru replied, hoisting his backpack onto his back, but wearing a similarly blank expression to the one he was wearing when he first met Iwaizumi earlier that day. There wasn’t much that Iwaizumi could do at this point, even with the knowledge of what was troubling Takeru.

The drive to Takeru’s house was mostly silent, with Takeru alternating between staring out the window, and closing his eyes and taking a short nap. The energy that he had displayed earlier seemed to have faded at the prospect of returning home. Iwaizumi glanced at him, wondering how to cheer the boy up. 

“I’ll be around all year to beat maths into your brain,” Iwaizumi said jokingly, keeping an eye out for Takeru’s reaction. “We can do snack runs each time if you do well.” Takeru straightened up, giving Iwaizumi a blinding smile so familiar that it had to be a genetic Oikawa thing.

“Hahaha, of course Iwa-sensei!” Takeru leaned his head back again, returning to his observation of his surroundings, but with a slight smile on his face. He remained silent for several minutes, slight smile still on his face, until he suddenly jolted forward, staring out at the front of the car in horror.

“Iwa-sensei!” Takeru yelled in a panic, noticing the small pale blur that appeared out of nowhere and directly into the path of Iwaizumi’s car. Iwaizumi slammed his foot onto the brake, wheels protesting loudly as the car lurched into a sudden stop, but not before a sudden jump had Iwaizumi gripping the steering wheel tightly, and indicating that his car had run over something. Both Iwaizumi and Takeru were thrown forward by the recoil from the sudden braking, seatbelts slamming them roughly back into their seats. Once the car was finally still, Iwaizumi looked towards Takeru with concern, taking in the boy’s heavy panting, and wide, staring eyes.

“Takeru, are you ok?” There were no visible signs of injury, however Iwaizumi was also worried about how Takeru’s parents would react if he bought him home shell-shocked.

“I’m fine,” Takeru said in a small voice. He attempted to twist around in his seat and look out the back window, however the seat belt that was still buckled in prevented him from doing so. Taking the hint, Iwaizumi unbuckled his seat belt and took out his smartphone, activating the flash light app.

“I’ll take a look,” Iwaizumi said firmly, correctly guessing that Takeru wanted to find out what they had run over. Takeru nodded, his heavy breathing slowing down, as Iwaizumi opened the car door and turned his phone around experimentally, bright light illuminating the darkness.

He picked up the trail of blood immediately behind the back of his car, torch following the smear down the road. Iwaizumi followed the trail down the road, finally stopping at the remnants of a small animal, likely a rabbit. At the very least, considering the size of the mammal, it was unlikely that there would be any damage to his car, although Iwaizumi felt a twinge of guilt for the life of the rabbit that he had just stolen.

Turning away, Iwaizumi started to head back towards his car before noticing a flash of something white highlighted on the edge of the road. Focusing his torch, Iwaizumi walked towards the object until he was close enough to see that it was a plastic dog kennel, metal door ajar.

Iwaizumi frowned, stepping closer to analyse the kennel further. The outside of the kennel looked pristine, like it had only been placed there recently. It was empty on the inside apart from a few brown dots that littered the base, dots that Iwaizumi realised were rabbit droppings. Rabbits were uncommon in urban areas such as Tokyo, and Iwaizumi felt his heart rate pick up as he made the connection between the dead rabbit and the cage.

There was a faint noise up ahead that sounded like a car door being roughly slammed shut. Startled, Iwaizumi jumped and turned away from the empty kennel, running back towards his car, which was where he had left it several minutes prior, but Iwaizumi’s heart rate refused to calm down for some reason.

“Takeru, it was just a rabbit,” he said, approaching the door to Takeru’s seat before freezing in shock. The only thing he could hear was the rapid pounding of his heart thumping in his ears as he registered the sight in front of him. _No. Not again._

_The water was icy cold but Hajime did not care, cradling the still figure in his arms, buoyed slightly by the water, chocolate-coloured hair a sprawled mess. His brown eyes were wide, still, staring at nothing -_

Takeru’s head was leaning to the side, arms splayed across both sides of the seat. His brown eyes were wide open, cheeks wet with tears, mouth open in an attempt to yell, and his chest unmoving.

 _Hajime shook the figure roughly in his arms, it had to be a joke, because there was no way that he_ _was dead, it was definitely just a bad dream –_

“Takeru!” Iwaizumi pulled opened the car door, shaking Takeru roughly as his panic rose, the shaking in his arms nearly uncontrollable as he attempted to find the pulse on Takeru’s still-warm neck with his hands. “Takeru!” He couldn’t feel anything that felt remotely like life, and shook Takeru weakly in an attempt to rouse him. “Takeru!” He noted the dark red marks that littered Takeru’s neck, his broken fingernails, Takeru’s terrified frozen face –

_He didn’t move no matter how hard Hajime shook him, no matter the amount of water he splashed around from his frantic movements. His chocolate-brown eyes continued staring into nothingness, as Hajime starting screaming and screaming from despair –_

Iwaizumi struggled to breathe as he tore himself away from Takeru, sliding down the side of the car, gripping his head roughly as the images he tried so hard to repress, to keep locked up, forced itself to the forefront of his mind. He registered the sound of approaching sirens, the dark silhouettes that signalled that he was no longer alone, and a strange noise he eventually registered as screaming.

Iwaizumi pushed himself away from his car, stumbling, he just needed to get away, far away from those brown, unstaring eyes. He struggled to keep the image separate from another pair of unstaring brown eyes, struggled to separate the sensations of shaking another completely still, completely dead ten-year-old body. Iwaizumi ran, feeling nauseous, not knowing where he was running, but not caring, he just needed to _get away_ , away from the dead Oikawas that penetrated his thoughts, his visions, his _everything_.

There was a faint crackling as the familiar glowing turquoise butterfly appeared, leaving a shimmery trail of turquoise lights in its wake, and Iwaizumi let the familiar numbing feeling take over him as he ran. 

* * *

 Iwaizumi opened his eyes, surprised at the brightness that enveloped him and dug into his eyes. He blinked furiously several times to get his surroundings back into focus from their initial blur. He registered that he was running, that there was a bouncing weight on his back that had not been there before, and that the school wall that he had just walked past felt unusually high. Iwaizumi may have been just shy of one-eighty centimetres, but he swore that he could always see far more of the shrubbery growing merrily behind the wall than he could now. Far more of it.

“Iwa-chan, you’re so slow today~!” 

A loud, chipper voice that should not have been speaking at this volume at this time of day made Iwaizumi realise that he was not running alone, and that a young boy of similar height to him was running several metres in front of him, blue backpack bouncing merrily with every step he took.

The boy turned sharply right, maintaining his distance from Iwaizumi and disappearing from his sight for several seconds until Iwaizumi also made the turn. Iwaizumi watched as the boy, who probably had the most irresistible shade of chocolate-brown hair that Iwaizumi had ever seen, stumbled across the open gates of the school entrance first, raising his arms in victory and releasing a triumphant yell. As he turned around towards Iwaizumi to celebrate his victory, Iwaizumi was struck by the brown eyes meeting his green ones. Iwaizumi stopped running once he passed the school gates, feeling an unusual sense of contentment and relief replacing the panic that was threatening to consume him from within. His twenty-year-old self helpfully provided a name with the cheerful face that continued to celebrate in front of him. Oikawa Tooru. His neighbour and best friend from his childhood in Miyagi.

Iwaizumi looked down at his hands, registering their small size for the first time, the small still-healing scrapes that had not been there previously, and the darker, tanned skin tone that had originally faded over the years from lack of sun exposure. He looked towards the school building, and the long, flowing white banner in the middle which proudly read “Congratulations to the volleyball team for making the 2004 Nationals!”. And then back towards Oikawa Tooru, who looked very much alive. Back towards the banner. 2004. A jubilant _moving_ Oikawa. His small, child-like hands, what was going on, _what was going on_ - 

The floodgates that temporarily held back memories from the events that had just transpired shattered, and Iwaizumi’s eyes widened in realisation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been in a massive Iwaoi mood lately, and I enjoyed BokuMachi, and somehow this idea stuck lol.


	2. (2004) Reaction

Revival had taken him back _ten years_ in time, taken him back to when he was still attending elementary school.

That was the only conclusion that Iwaizumi could come up with that made any kind of sense, as he finally stopped looking between his hands, Oikawa, and the banner hanging from the school building. Had his reaction to Takeru’s murder and the associated memories that came with it caused his Revival ability to completely mess up?

Instinctively, Iwaizumi observed his surroundings to better gauge when it was – at least he knew exactly where he was in terms of location. The air surrounding him had a frosty chill to it, and he was currently bundled up in multiple layers of clothing, the top layer being a puffy green down jacket. However, the trees surrounding the school gates were not completely devoid of leaves yet, and of course, Oikawa was still alive. That told Iwaizumi that it was before mid-December, likely either the end of November or start of December.

For the first time, Iwaizumi felt grateful for how his multiple Revival experiences had led him to become extremely level-minded when it came to adapting to sudden changes in environment. It was almost routine, and routine further helped to calm Iwaizumi down. Oikawa wasn’t dead. Takeru wasn’t dead. He could almost dismiss the distressing images floating in his brain as just a bad dream, because in this timeline, they had never happened.

“IWA-CHAN! Have you finally gotten deaf from listening to Godzilla roar too many times?!”

Oikawa was waving madly at Iwaizumi, voice at that stage where it was not quite yet a shout, but it was far above a suitable conversation volume. Taking note of the expectant expression on Oikawa’s face, Iwaizumi registered it was probably not the first time that Oikawa had called out to him within the last minute. He had probably tried several times without any luck.

Iwaizumi opened his mouth to reply, only to suddenly wonder how he had previously interacted with Oikawa before. Oikawa was his best friend, but to Iwaizumi, it had been over ten years since they last interacted. He was a twenty year old in his ten year old body. Another chilling thought crossed his mind. He was going to need to act as a convincing ten year old, wasn’t he? 

“Iwa-chan, we’re late for class! Super late!” Oikawa’s voice had gone up an octave into a near-whine. Despite his misgivings, Iwaizumi felt it was best to respond to Oikawa, otherwise he had a bad feeling that Oikawa would not only continue to escalate the whining, but it would start getting physical.  

“Uh…sorry,” Iwaizumi finally said, registering how _high_ his voice was compared to his deeper, twenty year old voice. That would take a bit of time to get used to.

“Sorry….?” Oikawa stopped moving, looking at Iwaizumi with a slightly confused expression. Iwaizumi too was confused by Oikawa’s reaction – had he said something wrong? The confusion must have shown on Iwaizumi’s face as Oikawa’s face morphed into a bright smile, one that made Iwaizumi feel slightly uneasy.

“Don’t mind, don’t mind, Iwa-chan! Let’s go!” Oikawa leapt towards Iwaizumi standing near the school gates and grabbed his arm, attempting to pull him towards the school building. The solid touch of Oikawa’s hand on his arm banished the last remaining doubts in Iwaizumi’s mind. Oikawa was warm, he was breathing, he was _real_.

“Iwa-” Oikawa was unable to finish his statement as Iwaizumi pulled him into a tight hug, ignoring the tickling on his face as Oikawa’s hair rubbed roughly against it as he squirmed in Iwaizumi’s grasp. Oikawa was warm, so warm, his scent was so reassuringly comforting, and Iwaizumi almost didn’t want to let go of him ever again. In that one moment hugging Oikawa, Iwaizumi felt as if he found the perfect moment missing in his life. _I missed you so much._

“Iwa-chan, we are really late you know.” Oikawa’s voice was muffled where it remained buried in Iwaizumi’s chest, and Iwaizumi hurriedly stepped back and let go of Oikawa, face flushed at what he had just done. Oikawa had not moved from where Iwaizumi had left him, a mix of amusement and puzzlement on his face. “Do you have a fever? You do tend to be really cuddly when you’re sick.” Oikawa stepped forward, hand outstretched to check Iwaizumi's temperature, but Iwaizumi stepped back to avoid him.

“I’m fine,” Iwaizumi barked out, instinctively having a feeling on how he would have reacted when he was younger. The moment Oikawa had turned his back to him, Iwaizumi quickly touched his forehead, reassuring himself that it felt pretty normal temperature wise. “Let’s go.” Iwaizumi pushed Oikawa forward whilst ignoring Oikawa’s not so quietly whispered “Iwa-chan’s definitely sick.”

Iwaizumi let Oikawa lead him into the school building and up several flights of stairs, hiding the fact that he legitimately could not remember where their old classroom was. They finally stopped at the final door down the corridor that they were hurrying down, door still ajar, where the sound of several voices was audible.

“Sorry Saito-sensei!” Oikawa huffed as he ran through the doorway of the room, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. Iwaizumi followed silently behind him, finding the slight pink blush on Oikawa’s face and the more windswept appearance of his brown hair to be quite cute and endearing. _Cute and endearing…really Hajime?_ Iwaizumi tried to get those stray thoughts out of his mind as he fully surveyed the classroom, as they were definitely _not_ appropriate for the current situation at hand.

His eyes were drawn instantly to the date written in the top right hand corner of the blackboard, feeling an icy chill go down his spine in response – Monday 6th December. 4 days. He had last seen Oikawa at the front entrance of their school on Friday the 10th.

_“Shittykawa! Where the hell are you?” Branches slapped Hajime’s face as he continued storming forward, head moving rapidly from side to side. “…Tooru, please.” Hajime’s arm flopped against the side of his body, hand clutching his mobile phone tightly after sending another text message that Tooru wouldn’t reply to._

He had powered through his entire weekend frantically looking for Oikawa, searching through every single one of their adventure spots, hiding spots, until finally on the 12th he –

No, it was not a good idea to think about that. No, Oikawa was alive now. There was no point in thinking about something that had not happened yet. That _would not_ happen. Iwaizumi knew exactly which day Oikawa disappeared. He could use that knowledge to fix the future, just like he had for every previous Revival he had been thrown into. But those thoughts did not stop images of a blankly staring Takeru, of an unseeing Oikawa coming up to the forefront of his mind.

“Iwaizumi-kun? Would you like to sit down today?” A synchronised chortle of laughter broke out within the room, as Iwaizumi noted the slight smile on his teacher’s face. Iwaizumi quickly looked around the room, trying to spot the empty seat that was hopefully his. He quickly noted that unlike his classmates, Oikawa was not laughing but staring intently at Iwaizumi, the expression in his eyes nearly unreadable. Iwaizumi walked into the room with false confidence, noting that unfortunately for him, there were two empty desks, one next to the window, and the other near Oikawa.

Iwaizumi headed towards the desk next to Oikawa, logically reasoning that Oikawa had probably forced him to sit next to him at the start of the school year.

“Iwa-chan, are you lost?” Oikawa laughed as Iwaizumi approached the desk next to him, but the same uncomfortable feeling that he had felt earlier in the morning made itself known to Iwaizumi as he made eye contact with Oikawa. “Whilst I know you would love to sit next to me, what about poor Chihiro-chan?”

“Oikawa-kun,” Saito scolded, giving Oikawa a meaningful look as the class laughed again. Iwaizumi felt the panic well up in him, realising his source of unease as several childhood memories became clearer. Oikawa was a master of faking it until it was believable, something that had always fooled his peers around him, but never Iwaizumi. He was a lot more aware and concerned about Iwaizumi’s behaviour than he tried to let on.  _Shit._

“Don’t forget about me, Iwaizumi-kun!”

The girl sitting behind the other empty desk smiled widely and waved at Iwaizumi, causing the class to burst into another hysterical round of laughter. She had short, dark brown hair, which complimented the lighter shade of brown in her eyes. Iwaizumi was also sure her wide smile was definitely more genuine than what Oikawa had shown today, with no traces of hidden intentions. He also had no idea what her name was – actually, apart from Oikawa, he really couldn’t recall the names of any of his classmates. Did that mean that he was not close to any of them, apart from Oikawa? It was something he would have to figure out later if he was going to relive his childhood days.

Iwaizumi could feel his face burning up as he moved robotically towards the other empty desk, roughly dumping his backpack there and doing his best to ignore his classmates. Within the chorus of laughter and whispers, he could pick up Oikawa’s snickering specifically, reacting just like how the class would expect him to do so.

“Iwaizumi looked like he woke up on the wrong side of bed.”

“Do you think Michimiya likes Iwaizumi? She _waved_ at him.” Whilst Iwaizumi did not like the direction that conversation was going towards at all, at least it allowed him to learn that the girl sitting behind him was called Michimiya. “Ewwww no, I heard he plays with bugs. Oikawa told me about it once.”

“Class, class, settle down please!” The laughter and whispers quickly died down as Saito raised his voice, standing in the middle of the room and holding the class roll in his arms. “Just a quick formality to see who’s here. Akiyama!”

“Here!”

Iwaizumi quickly tuned out the noise around him, responding only to let out a quick “Here!” when Saito called out his name. There did not seem to be anything complicated behind what he had to do in this Revival despite having gone back ten years in time to do so. Oikawa had disappeared sometime after he left him behind at school on the 10th, so all he had to do was make sure Oikawa was not left behind this time right? The only difficulty Iwaizumi felt that he would encounter would be finding out why Oikawa had chosen to stay behind, when normally he would be more than enthusiastically bounding after Iwaizumi and invading his personal space.

Part way through the class, Iwaizumi also felt his focus drifting towards Oikawa. He soaked in the sight of Oikawa, sun from the window illuminating his chocolate brown hair and giving it an orangey, glowing outline. Oikawa was quite focused on the class, eyes narrowed in concentration, tip of his tongue visible, hand writing furiously on his notebook. Iwaizumi could also picture the writing in Oikawa’s notebook, recalling having stolen it multiple times to help him study – cramped, messy, but meticulous, always trying to capture every detail like each was the puzzle to unlocking a new secret. Iwaizumi quietly enjoyed the sight of this particular Oikawa, unable to resist a smile. This Oikawa was no memory.

The bell rang signalling recess, sharply snapping Iwaizumi from his doze. His classmates were quick to rise from their seats, rummaging for their snacks as the volume around Iwaizumi slowly increased. Oikawa on the other hand took his time, carefully placing his pencil on his desk before bending over to grab his backpack. 

“Iwaizumi, you’ve been staring at Oikawa a _lot_ this morning, you know?” One of his classmates approached him as he walked past, giving him a wink. “Don’t you already like live with the guy or something already?” His friend beside him laughed. Iwaizumi gave them a blank expression in response. It wasn’t just Oikawa that could be annoying, Iwaizumi realised with irritation. Ten year olds were just annoying in general, particularly when Iwaizumi himself was double that age and forced to act like one. There had to have been a reason why he was so apprehensive to tutor students in the first place before he met Takeru.

Iwaizumi didn’t have the energy to come up with a response as suddenly stood up from his seat, brushing past his laughing classmates as he moved, approaching Oikawa’s desk where Oikawa was still busy with his backpack. He felt the laughter follow him as he moved. Ten year olds. They laughed far too much at his expense.

“Oi, Oikawa could you be any slower?” To prove his point, Iwaizumi lightly threw up his apple up into the air and caught it repeatedly. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Michimiya staring intently at him, her face oddly serious compared to her earlier expression. 

“So impatient, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa pouted, finally pulling out a blue lunchbox from his bag, which he carefully opened. “But I have something far better than that apple of yours.” Oikawa triumphantly revealed a packet of milk bread, wrapped neatly in plastic, which Iwaizumi let out a snort at.

“You still eat that crap? It’s a wonder you still have teeth left.”

“I overheard your mum telling my mum the other day that you beg her every night to make you agedashi tofu for dinner.”

“I do not!” Iwaizumi snapped back at Oikawa, glaring.

In reality, Iwaizumi was furiously trying to remember whether he actually did used to do that, or whether Oikawa was messing with him. Unfortunately, it was likely that Oikawa was right given his passion for agedashi tofu was at least as strong as Oikawa’s passion for milk bread. Iwaizumi refused to give him that opportunity to tease him, attempting to give him a light punch in the arm instead. Oikawa dodged neatly with a grin, finally getting up from his chair and motioning for Iwaizumi to follow him out.

* * *

In the end, it had not been that difficult to integrate himself back into the routine of elementary school life. The main challenge had actually been feigning attention in class and not actually falling asleep, particularly during maths which had been too mind-numbingly easy for Iwaizumi to handle. However, Oikawa was an excellent distraction when he felt himself nodding off, with Iwaizumi content to just look and savour his existence. He recalled how he had complained about Oikawa to his mother so many times, how he had actually taken Oikawa’s presence for granted then. Iwaizumi was crystal clear on what he needed to do this Revival.

The final bell rang at three pm, signalling the end of the school day. The class was in a rush to pack up, eager to escape any further teachings of English for the day. As Iwaizumi walked past the teacher’s desk, Saito raised his hand, motioning for Iwaizumi to approach. Oikawa stopped at the door, attempting to look disinterested but was clearly intending to listen in as he waited.

“Are you feeling alright today, Iwaizumi-kun? I noticed that you were having a lot of trouble staying awake in class, and you nearly forgot where you sat this morning!” Saito chuckled as a slight blush of embarrassment crossed Iwaizumi’s face.

“I’m feeling alright, Saito-sensei. Maybe just didn’t get enough sleep last night.” Iwaizumi did his best to look lethargic. Physically he was feeling fine, but mentally he could definitely do with a long nap.

“That’s fine, I understand, just look after yourself next time Iwaizumi-kun. See you tomorrow!” With one final smile, Saito waved farewell at Iwaizumi, signalling the end of the conversation. Iwaizumi nodded in acknowledgement, meeting up with Oikawa at the door, who was wearing an amused smile on his face.

“Ooh, Iwa-chan got into trouble~” Oikawa had clearly enjoyed listening in way too much. Iwaizumi did not bother with a voiced response, instead giving Oikawa a sudden, sharp tap on the head which Oikawa did not manage to dodge in time.

“Iwa-chan! That was mean. My brain cells are delicate!”

“They’re not much of a loss, considering you didn’t have that many to start out with.” Oikawa threw Iwaizumi his most scandalised expression, clearly hoping to guilt Iwaizumi into an apology. _That was a good one._  Iwaizumi noted Oikawa's response and decided to keep that comeback stored again for future use.

Iwaizumi and Oikawa followed the crowd of students out of the school building and past the gates, turning into one of the busier roads in Sendai. Cars occasionally whizzed past as they walked down the footpath, bickering and throwing the occasional insult. They had been walking for several minutes before Oikawa suddenly stopped speaking mid-sentence, standing still, and a movement out of the corner of Iwaizumi’s eye caught his attention.

From the other side of the road, a small white dog burst out of the bushes and onto the grey cement of the currently empty road. Iwaizumi registered a larger shape moving towards the road beside him, and his heart felt as if it had stopped and sunk to the bottom of an ocean when he registered that it was in fact Oikawa running headlong onto the road.

“Papi-channnnnn!” The voice was high, panicked, and extremely distressed.

“OIKAWA!”

A young girl with pigtails, no more than five years old and wearing a frilly pink dress, had her arms outstretched, running towards the road.

Oikawa, arms moving wildly as he sprinted across the road, reaching out for the dog wagging its tail slowly as it examined their surroundings curiously.

Iwaizumi stood paralysed on the footpath for about two seconds before the situation in front of him and possible outcomes fully registered, noting the sound of an oncoming car heading straight towards Oikawa and the dog he was trying to catch. He did not hesitate to move, thankful that there were no oncoming cars on his side of the road, and ran out towards Oikawa, cursing under his breath. “What the hell is with me and car accidents lately.”

Iwaizumi slammed into Oikawa, grabbing him tightly in a bear hug and momentum forcing Oikawa to stumble forward towards the nearest footpath, taking Iwaizumi down with him as they landed onto the footpath together. Oikawa clung tightly to the dog he had just caught, letting out a cry of pain when he landed heavily on the ground but partly cushioned by Iwaizumi. The oncoming car braked heavily, coming to a stop less than a metre away from where Oikawa had been standing several seconds ago.

“Are you alright?!”

Panting heavily, a woman ran towards the pair, a look of relief crossing her face as Iwaizumi and Oikawa simultaneously nodded back at her. She turned towards the shocked young girl, who had tears starting to well up in her eyes as she stared resolutely at the ground. “Sakura-chan, that car could’ve hit you if you ran onto the road!”

“I’m sorry, mum!”

The girl with pigtails burst into tears as the dog in Oikawa’s arms slipped out of his loosened grasp, running towards her. Iwaizumi focused his attention back to Oikawa who was unusually quiet, moving to unwrap his arms from Oikawa’s torso and repositioning him slightly so he could examine him. Iwaizumi instantly noted the damage done to Oikawa’s pants, badly torn at the right knee and extending up towards his thighs, with blood from the deep scrape starting to stain the fabric around it.

“Shit, we should get this washed,” Iwaizumi muttered, more to himself than to Oikawa, as he pulled off his backpack, looking for the water bottle he knew was not completely empty. On finding it, he gave Oikawa no warning before pouring some of the contents onto Oikawa’s knee. Oikawa let out a hiss in shock, but unexpectedly made no complaints or offered any resistance to Iwaizumi's actions.

“Iwa-chan, I’ll be fine.”

Oikawa attempted to brush off Iwaizumi’s concern as Iwaizumi deemed Oikawa’s injured knee as mostly clean, moving on to check Oikawa for any other injuries. Iwaizumi did not miss the slight quivering of Oikawa’s lips that suggested he was hiding how much pain he actually was in. Iwaizumi was at the stage where he was not sure he was relieved that Oikawa was mostly unhurt apart from his knee, or whether he was extremely angry and wanted to beat some sense into Oikawa’s head, permanently.

“Fine? You IDIOT, you could’ve gotten yourself killed! Why on earth would you run out like that?”

It was something Iwaizumi yelled out more as a reprimand as opposed to a genuine question he wanted an answer for. He knew exactly why Oikawa had done what he did, but it did not stop him from panicking or worrying at all. What concerned Iwaizumi more was that he never remembered this incident happening before, and could not, no matter how hard he thought, remember what he had been doing this particular afternoon. All he could recall was Oikawa turning up to his house the next morning with bandages on his chin and both elbows, proudly exclaiming upon his entrance into the Iwaizumi household that it was a battle wound gained from helping a poor maiden in distress. Was this incident what led to those injuries the first time? What had Iwaizumi changed today that led to these differing events? Iwaizumi felt himself scowling again, irritated at how easy it was to forget things in general.

“Iwa-chan, are you my mum?” _Hajime, don’t punch him_. “You’ve been really clingy today, don’t think I didn’t notice you staring at me in class today. I always knew that deep down you appreciate my charm.” _Don’t punch him._ Oikawa winked at Iwaizumi, giving him a dazzling grin and a peace sign with his right hand as Iwaizumi continued to roughly check Oikawa over. Somehow, whilst most of Oikawa’s skin was unbroken apart from his right knee, there was also a large, yellowing bruise that ran horizontally across his right thigh that definitely could not be explained off by playing volleyball.

“Shittykawa, your charm can’t even attract bugs, let alone people.” It was an insult said instinctively and absent-mindedly, as Iwaizumi continued to examine Oikawa roughly.

“So mean!”

Iwaizumi tuned out Oikawa’s complaints as he helped Oikawa up, convinced that apart from the nasty scrape on his knee that he was mostly unhurt from this incident.

“Iwa-chan, can you bandage me up?” Iwaizumi ignored him, mind focused elsewhere.

“Oikawa, what happened there?” Iwaizumi pointed at Oikawa’s upper thigh, far enough from his knee injury that Oikawa knew exactly what he was referring to. Oikawa went silent for a few seconds before turning away from Iwaizumi towards the girl he saved, safely reunited with her dog and mother.

“Don’t worry about it…. I hate to admit it, but I can be clumsy sometimes, Iwa-chan. I fell down the stairs.” Oikawa gave Iwaizumi another dazzling smile, one that Iwaizumi instantly read as hiding his true nerves, as Iwaizumi intensified his glare.

“Oikawa.” Oikawa quailed at Iwaizumi’s no-nonsense tone, raising his hands in defeat.

“Okay okay, sometimes I get hurt helping people alright?” Oikawa motioned towards the young girl, who had finally stopped crying and was staring at Oikawa and Iwaizumi with wide eyes.

“Hurt……helping people.” Not only was that a unusual response from Oikawa, Iwaizumi also felt it was an odd way to phrase that particular statement. He wanted to push the issue further but was interrupted by the young girl approaching them nervously, her mother following closely behind.

“Sakura-chan, what should you say to these boys?”

“T-thank you,” Sakura said shakily, holding Papi-chan tightly as she struggled to maintain eye contact.

“Good girl.” Sakura’s mum turned towards Iwaizumi and Oikawa, both standing still on the footpath. “And you two…”

Iwaizumi and Oikawa both stiffened, giving each other a knowing look. The instinct of ten year old boys to recognise an incoming reprimand from a mother was never wrong. 

“It was very brave of you two to run after Papi,” she began, crossing her arms. Oikawa and Iwaizumi looked at each other again, both feeling the impending moment of doom approaching. “However it was extremely irresponsible and dangerous of you two to run onto the road as well!” She then looked directly at Iwaizumi, who could not help but cringe internally. He reminded himself that he was twenty years old, but he felt like a young child destined for an hour of solitude in the naughty corner. “As you were telling your friend, you both could’ve gotten yourselves killed. As important as Papi is, just think of your family if they heard you got hit by a car!”

Oikawa opened his mouth, looking as if he dearly wanted to interrupt, his eyes lighting up, but bit his lip instead, remaining silent.

_“You’re lying! Tooru isn’t-no he can’t be-” The wild, shattered look on Oikawa Aimi’s face as she screamed for her younger brother, restrained by the police officer who had broken the news to her, burned itself into Hajime’s memory._

Iwaizumi also remained silent and stared at the ground beneath him, remembering first hand how loss was received by different people. Recalling the feeling of loss, and openly seeing the reaction to loss only further served to fuel Iwaizumi’s determination to change things this time.

Sakura’s mother relaxed her posture, signalling the end of her lecture. “But thank you again.” Her voice was now significantly softer. “I had a horrible feeling that Sakura may not have waited but run after Papi if you two boys didn’t go after him first.” She paused, making sure that Iwaizumi and Oikawa were aware of her appreciation. “I can drop you boys home if you don’t live too far from here.”

“Thank you!” Oikawa broke his silence and bowed in thanks, eyes motioning at Iwaizumi to do the same.

The drive to Oikawa’s place, and by extension Iwaizumi’s next door, was mostly quiet, silence only broken by polite questions about what school the boys went to, and the sounds of Sakura struggling to keep Papi still in the front seat. When they arrived at their destination a short while later, Sakura’s mother got out of the car with the two boys, clearly intent on explaining the situation to their parents.

“Iwa-chan, I think we should hide,” Oikawa bent over, whispering loudly into Iwaizumi’s ear as they approached Oikawa’s house.

“Oikawa….” Iwaizumi started, warning lacing his voice as Oikawa grabbed his wrist.

“Iwa-chan, let’s gooooo~” Iwaizumi let himself get dragged out of sight by Oikawa as Oikawa’s mother opened the front door, Sakura’s mother introducing herself and explaining the situation.

Iwaizumi knew that there would likely to be hell faced tonight from both of their parents, but for now he was content to forget about responsibility and indulge his ten year old self with Oikawa’s game of hide and seek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> May the detective work begin! I really should’ve been studying for my exams before writing this, but yolo I wanted to write something more fluffy, so hopefully this chapter turned out ok (❁°͈▵°͈)


	3. (2004) Routine

Iwaizumi glared at the mobile phone he was using, thumb pressing several buttons randomly. The screen size was too small, the display wasn’t even in colour, and it really did not do much else but make and receive calls. Iwaizumi gave the mobile phone one last glare before giving up and shoving it roughly into his jacket pocket, scanning his surroundings for any sight of Oikawa. It had been a hope made in vain that his 2004 brick phone could provide a distraction from the monotony of waiting for Oikawa to arrive.

“Iwa-chan, let’s get to practice, let’s go!” Oikawa practically flew out of the school building as he suddenly appeared, holding the blue gym bag that he had left behind in the classroom earlier and standing in front of Iwaizumi.

“Could you be any slower, Oikawa?” Iwaizumi said in irritation, moving his back from its uncomfortable position against the school building.

Oikawa airily waved away Iwaizumi’s accusation, carefully keeping himself outside of Iwaizumi’s punching range and running ahead towards the school gym. Iwaizumi followed, both boys panting when they finally reached the entrance to the gym, where the bounce of volleyballs against the wooden floor could already be heard.

“Oikawa, Iwaizumi, nice of you two to turn up.” Their club coach, a short but heavily built man in his forties, stood at the entrance to the gym, looking calm but arms crossed as he watched the two approach. “Get changed, and start warming up!”

“Yes, Irihata-sensei!” Oikawa and Iwaizumi said in unison, moving quickly towards the change rooms.

Once changed, Oikawa and Iwaizumi joined the rest of the club in their warm up, moving around the gym with a gentle jog. Iwaizumi could not help but get lost in his surroundings, taking in the layout of the gym, the volleyball net strung up across the middle, balls resting in a trolley towards the back, as well as the general cheerful atmosphere that surrounded him.

“Ho ho ho, you’re finally here!” Iwaizumi felt someone slap him on the back, hard, his stumble allowing his mystery attacker to catch up and run beside him. Iwaizumi looked to his right, taking in the boy with spiky white-grey hair and round golden eyes that seemed to sparkle from the reflection of the gym lights. Unlike his earlier struggles to recall the names of his classmates, a name for the owl-like boy beside him easily floated to the forefront of his mind. Bokuto Kotarou. Iwaizumi felt a strong sense of familiarity associated with the name. 

“Ko-chan, don’t be so rough with my Iwa-chan!” Oikawa moved to Iwaizumi’s left, effectively sandwiching him between the two excited boys as they continued running around the gym.

“Oiiiiiiikawa!” Iwaizumi tried to resist flinching as Bokuto yelled in greeting, far too close to his right ear. “You ready to be blown away by my powerful spikes?” Bokuto swung his right hand down in imitation of a spike, looking triumphant.

Oikawa gave Bokuto a grin that could only be described as shit-eating as he issued a challenge of his own, again yelling loudly enough that Iwaizumi also feared for his other ear. “You won’t even have a ball to spike because my jump serve is going to make everyone back off in fear!”

“No jump serves, Oikawa,” Iwaizumi interrupted suddenly, mentally cringing at some of Oikawa’s more dramatic attempts at perfecting the serve.

“And to both of you, I will out-spike you idiots.” Iwaizumi increased his pace, leaving Oikawa and Bokuto behind and ending his involvement in the conversation. However, Iwaizumi already felt far more comfortable and had stronger sense of belonging compared to back in the classroom.

He enjoyed the thrill of physical activity, both as a child and as an adult. He enjoyed the burning feeling in his muscles as he pushed them past their limits, the feeling of sweat dripping down his skin as a reward for his efforts. It was both refreshing and liberating, just the simple feeling of putting one foot in front of another and forcing himself forward. He could forget the heavier issues looming on his mind. 

Irihata blew his whistle after several minutes, getting everyone’s attention as they quickly jogged over towards him, forming a loose semi-circle formation.

“You have all been practicing very hard lately-”

“Especially me coach!” Bokuto grinned widely, letting out a jump in excitement.

“-not just you Bokuto, everyone.” Iwaizumi watched as Bokuto deflated slightly, Oikawa putting his arm around him in consolation.

“Considering that the holidays are coming up, today’s practice will be a practice game against each other.”

The gym erupted into a loud cheer, Bokuto being the loudest of all, as Irihata tried to get everyone’s attention again with a few waves of his arms. Iwaizumi himself felt his heart rate pick up, finding himself excited at the prospect of playing volleyball with Oikawa again. He could barely remember the last time he had played volleyball, finding that his passion for the sport had evaporated without Oikawa’s presence. Iwaizumi looked around, trying to recollect the names of all his classmates and possible strengths and weaknesses as Irihata continued explaining.

“As there are twelve of us today we will be doing a six-vs-six.” Irihata paused, letting his words sink in as the class waited in anticipation for further instructions, tightly wound with excitement. “And today, I will let you all choose your team mates, so please choose carefully.”

Whatever restraint the club had earlier snapped as the gym erupted into a cacophony of voices.

“I’m going with Iwa-chan!” Oikawa grabbed Iwaizumi’s arm, hugging it tightly and shooting anyone who came near Iwaizumi a possessive look. Iwaizumi himself did not protest, his competitive instinct knowing that working together with Oikawa, after so many hours of practice, gave them the best chance of winning the game together. He gave Oikawa a nod of confirmation.

“I want to be the captain of the other team then!” Bokuto added, waving his arm madly for attention.

Irihata sighed, looking resigned but putting up no protest. “Bokuto and Oikawa will act as today’s captains. I will let you all choose teams, but I will split you up myself if I hear any complaints, understood?”

“Yes coach!” the club said simultaneously, splitting themselves into the available two groups. Iwaizumi examined his fellow teammates as they approached Oikawa’s side of the court, silently admiring their willingness to play with Oikawa. Oikawa greeted each person that approached him with a high-five, a smile, and a way-too-casual nickname that irritated Iwaizumi to no end.

“Minami-chan, you’ve always had great taste in teammates.” Minami nodded silently in agreement, offering no protest.

“Yoshida-chan, you look super confident today!” Yoshida returned Oikawa’s grin, puffing out his chest.

“Excited to have you on board, Honda-chan!” Honda seemed to be the only person with slight misgivings, wincing slightly at the sharp sound made when his hand made contact with Oikawa’s.

“Ah, Nakamin, you look in great shape for some blocking today ~” The mentioned ‘Nakamin’ was taller than Iwaizumi by several centimetres, and was indeed the tallest player on the field today. Iwaizumi also recognised him as sitting diagonally in front of Oikawa in their class.

“Nakamura,” he automatically corrected. Iwaizumi felt himself nod slightly in appreciation of his efforts in still correcting Oikawa. “And yes, why wouldn’t I be?” Nakamura looked across the court, focusing on Bokuto. “It’s funny watching Bokuto get all mopey when I block him, haha.”

 _Oh great, he’s a bastard at heart too_. Iwaizumi sure knew how to hang out with the best, an opinion that rapidly solidified as Oikawa started his team prep talk. However, Oikawa was more than happy to hear everyone’s opinion on which position they wanted to play in the match. Iwaizumi automatically declared himself a wing spiker, with Nakamura electing to play as a middle blocker alongside Minami, Oikawa as a setter, and Yoshida and Honda also playing as spikers, as neither of them wanted to play a purely defensive role.

Irihata blew his whistle after several minutes of discussion to get everyone’s attention. “Are both teams ready to play?”

A loud, enthusiastic chorus of ‘yeses’ echoed throughout the gym, as both teams ran to their respective side of their courts to line up. Iwaizumi was only able to instantly recognise Bokuto, however the taller pink-brown haired boy and thick eye browed boy lined up beside him also caught Iwaizumi’s eye. He was fairly certain that he would have been able to recall their names seconds had Oikawa not pushed him towards the front of the net and cut off his train of thought.

“Iwa-chan, get ready, game starting!” Oikawa’s eyes were bright and focused, his trademark smile narrowed into a tight grin as he stared down in challenge towards Bokuto.

“Shake hands, captains!” Iwaizumi resisted the urge to sigh as Bokuto and Oikawa approached each other to shake hands, both looking far too serious. He could hear a light murmur from their direction signalling that the two captains were having a discussion, and Iwaizumi did not need to hear it in detail to guess what was being said.

“You have a horrible personality, Shittykawa,” Iwaizumi growled at Oikawa as he returned. Oikawa smiled in response, giving off a dangerous air.

“Me? I was just making sure Ko-chan knew _exactly_ where he stands in this game,” Oikawa said sweetly, eyes burning in anticipation. “We’re going to crush him together.” Oikawa raised his closed fist, with Iwaizumi’s fist also meeting his in response.

“You can crush them without being mean.” However, Iwaizumi could not deny the adrenaline running through his veins, as Oikawa nodded at him one last time before heading to the back line to serve, bouncing the ball in preparation.

Iwaizumi stared ahead, meeting the eyes of the pink-brown haired boy playing as a spiker on Bokuto’s team. Iwaizumi returned the challenge in the boy’s eyes with the most intimidating look he could come up with, the look that Oikawa complained always made Iwaizumi ‘look like a brute’.

Iwaizumi resisted the urge to look back at Oikawa, feeling that he was taking an unusually long amount of time to serve. Then he heard Oikawa’s feet squeaking against the floor of the gym, and suddenly he felt an extra few beads of sweat run down his face at a sudden feeling of déjà vu. Oikawa wasn’t going to do a jump serve, not after Iwaizumi warned him not to, please don’t-

A light whooshing sound and a blast of cold air was the only warning Iwaizumi got before he felt something slam into the back of his head, hard. The bounce of the ball on the ground was emphasised by the total silence in the gym as everyone absorbed what had just happened.

Laughter erupted from the other side of the net, particularly from Bokuto and the pink-brown haired boy. Behind him, Oikawa was silent, but Iwaizumi was certain that any second now he was going to start apologising. Iwaizumi bent down and picked up the volleyball that had rolled behind him, thinking about where to aim it as he turned around. Oikawa stood frozen, eyes glued to the ball in Iwaizumi’s hands. Irihata was blowing his whistle in an attempt to get everyone’s attention, however it was mostly lost in the din of noise echoing around the gym.

_“Iwa-chan, I am so sorry, please don’t throw that ball at me-ARRRGH!” Oikawa managed to cover his face with his arms to prevent a direct hit to the face from Iwaizumi’s volleyball._

“Iwa-chan, I am so sorry, please don’t throw that ball at me-ARRRGH!” Iwaizumi released the volleyball from his hands, watching it fly true towards its intended target, Oikawa, who unfortunately managed to cover his face with his arms to prevent a direct hit to the face.

“Iwa-chan, I’m sorrrrry!” And sorry Oikawa genuinely looked.

 _And Irihata’s whistle will finally be heard by everyone_ , Iwaizumi thought absent-mindedly, before Irihata’s shrill blowing of the whistle finally calmed everyone down. It was at this point that Iwaizumi realised where the source of his initial déjà vu came from – he had obviously played this particular game of volleyball before and had been hit in the back of the head by Oikawa before. And that also meant that he knew who won the match, didn’t he?

Iwaizumi was torn between his pride as to whether he should leave things as is and not worry about the original outcome, or remember the original game and change things up a bit.

“Oikawa, please send the ball over to Matsukawa so he can serve. 1-0, Bokuto’s team!”

As Iwaizumi felt a few more glances of pity aimed towards him, he decided to forget his pride for a bit. Revival had always been used to save others, so what was wrong with using it once to help himself? And Iwaizumi had always been as competitive, possibly even more so than Oikawa, and he absolutely hated losing. No, this time he would make sure that Oikawa’s team won.

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi said calmly, gears turning in his mind as remembered their key weaknesses from the first time they played this match. “We will definitely win this one.” 

It was still a tight match even with Iwaizumi’s knowledge, with Bokuto’s spikes being as deadly as promised, and Oikawa’s jump serves missing as often as they landed. Despite this, Iwaizumi felt significantly lighter at being able to change the results of the match. If he could change the outcome of this match, he would be able to change other events in the future too. 

Even Irihata’s post-match discussion had changed from what Iwaizumi had recalled, and he really could not help the smile that remained on his face even as he headed towards the change rooms with everyone else.

“Mannn, I’m starving after that game!” Nakamura groaned, petting his stomach for emphasis as Iwaizumi and Oikawa followed him out of the change room, fully changed. “You up for the usual, Oikawa-kun, Iwaizumi-kun?”

Iwaizumi barely had a second to think about what _the usual_ could possibly be, before a smile so bright it was nearly blinding appeared on Oikawa’s face. There were not many things that could elicit that kind of genuine, unfiltered reaction from Oikawa, and considering Nakamura’s hunger there could only be one place. The eternal hunger saviour of all surrounding sports teams within the vicinity, the infamous Miyamoto Bakery, with its complete lack of respect towards health and instead a very strong respect towards sugar. It was not Iwaizumi’s favourite place, but it was Oikawa’s.

“Nakamin, did you even need to ask? Miya-san does the most _divine_ milk bread, ever,” Oikawa said dramatically, letting out a fake gasp in shock. “I deserve his special milk bread for this effort, don’t I, Iwa-chan?”

“You deserve a few more volleyballs to the head,” Iwaizumi shot back, absently rubbing the back of his head where Oikawa’s ball had hit it earlier, as the trio continued heading towards the exit of the school gates. That was definitely a growing bump that wouldn’t disappear for _days_.

“I’ll buy you milk bread if you forgive me, Iwa-chan?” Oikawa pleaded, giving Iwaizumi his most wide-eyed, innocent expression. Iwaizumi struggled to keep his expression annoyed as he made eye contact, knowing what Oikawa was playing at but still unable to resist his charms. His Oikawa-resistance had probably crumbled over the years without contact.

“Agedashi tofu,” Iwaizumi corrected, attempting to milk whatever he could from the situation. “For the rest of the week from the store next door to the bakery.”

“Falling for the moe eyes again, eh?” a snicker from behind Iwaizumi alerted the trio that they were not in fact alone in their journey towards the famed bakery.

“Oikawa is pretty much the pet in this relationship…although I’m not sure who the master is,” another voice drawled, somehow managing to sound bored but excited at the same time. Oikawa, Nakamura, and Iwaizumi turned around to be met with the pink-brown haired and thick eye browed pair who were playing on Bokuto’s team.

There was definitely a vein throbbing in Iwaizumi’s forehead, he could just feel it. Digging through his memories for an annoying duo in their volleyball club, he quickly recalled two names – Hanamaki and Matsukawa. The speed at which Iwaizumi recalled their names was slightly terrifying, as it probably meant that the pair had left a significant impression on him. Probably not a good one either.

“Excuse me?!” Oikawa shrieked, torn between horror and disbelief. For once, Iwaizumi shared his feelings, feeling a very strong need to throw something at the smirking pair. “I am _not_ a pet!”

“They say acceptance is the first step to recovery.”

“They need to understand what’s going on first before they can accept the truth.” Hanamaki nodded in agreement, attempting to look wise but the smirk on his face betraying him.

“Heeeeeey don’t leave without meeee!” Bokuto yelled wildly as he caught up to the group, his bag unzipped from his haste in running. “You’re heading to Miya-san’s right?”

Nakamura seized the opportunity to stop Hanamaki and Matsukawa in their tracks, nodding at Bokuto. “We’re heading there right now before he closes up.”

“YESSSS! Let’s hurry then!” Bokuto wasted no more time on discussions, running ahead and leading the others towards the bakery nearby. The bakery was located on a street just off the main road, near the local shopping centre and surrounded by other small businesses including one of Iwaizumi’s favourite agedashi tofu hot spots.

“Cream puffs come to meeeee!” Hanamaki raced through the entrance of the bakery first, wallet clutched tightly in his hand. Oikawa followed closely behind, not caring who he shoved as he entered. Iwaizumi entered last, hoping that Oikawa would in fact leave some money left over to shout him tofu from next door, but deeming it unlikely after seeing the bundle of milk bread he was now carrying to a nearby table.

“Iwaizumi-kun, always the responsible one of the group!” Iwaizumi was met with the familiar wide smile of a muscular man wearing a red apron, constantly moving between the cash register and the items for sale behind the counter. Iwaizumi recognised him instantly as the owner and baker of the store, Miyamoto Norio, affectionately known to the entire volleyball club as Miya-san. “What would you like to get today?”

Iwaizumi stepped up towards the glass counter, examining the various cakes, cupcakes and breads available. A small, round bun sprinkled with black sesame caught his eye – it didn’t look too sweet, but was light enough that he could go for another round of food once everyone was done at the bakery. 

“The red bean bun!” Iwaizumi couldn’t help the enthusiasm in his tone, especially as he really was starting to feel hungry.

“Ah, so the usual then?” Miyamoto grabbed a pair of tongs, placing the red bean bun into a bag and handing it over to Iwaizumi. “That will be 200 yen.”

After dumping the majority of his spare change, Iwaizumi joined Oikawa and the others at their table, Oikawa having already devoured one milk bread in Iwaizumi’s absence. Oikawa took one look at Iwaizumi’s bag and let out a snort between chews.

“You’re so-” Oikawa took a second to properly swallow his current mouthful of milk bread before continuing. “-boring, Iwa-chan! Red bean again? Milk bread is where it’s at, milk bread!”

Oikawa waved his final bag of milk bread in Iwaizumi’s face as Iwaizumi scowled, watching Oikawa devour his second milk bread with his other hand. Behind him, Miyomoto chuckled, coming out from behind the counter to clean up their mess. Hanamaki was attempting to shove as many cream puffs into his mouth before Matsukawa could steal it, and Nakamura was alternating between watching the pair and staring down at his unfinished custard tart.

“I wish my stepson was as enthusiastic about my food as you boys are,” Miyamoto said fondly, collecting the discarded plastic bags and crumbs into an empty rubbish bag. “He’s definitely got the same energy for volleyball as you boys, but just stares blankly at my food. Every time.”

“That’s a real shame!” Bokuto said, sitting back contentedly after finishing his slice of cake. “He’s missing out on the best. Isn’t that right, Oikawaaa?”

Oikawa could only nod in agreement, mouth stuffed. Hanamaki behind him gave Miyamoto a thumbs up, other hand attempting to keep his final cream puffs away from Matsukawa’s reach.

Miyamoto laughed, heading back behind the counter. “Don’t leave too late though, it’s getting cold outside.” Miyomoto nodded at Iwaizumi, a nod that probably signalled ‘make sure those boys don’t do anything stupid on their way home’.

“Oi, Oikawa, after you’re done eating you’re getting me that tofu, or else you’ll be finding bugs in your things for the next week.”

“Don’t get too cranky, Iwa-chan, you’re going to get more wrinkles than my mum!” Oikawa said airily, finishing off his last milk bread and standing from his seat to get veryone’s attention. “I’m going to have to follow Iwa-chan out, I think he’s being serious with his threats this time.” Oikawa faked a sad face as the others laughed, waving farewell enthusiastically.

“Cya Oikawa, Iwaizumi!”

“Iwaizumi, don’t grow any older than you already are!” Iwaizumi turned around to give one final glare at Matsukawa, who smirked back at Iwaizumi, before heading next door to get tofu with Oikawa by his side.

* * *

 _What have I been doing?_ Iwaizumi tuned out Saito’s voice, deep in his thoughts. On Monday, all Iwaizumi assumed he needed to do was to not leave Oikawa behind at school on Friday. On Tuesday, he had not even given the situation a second thought, instead using his memories of the past to change the outcome of a volleyball game and feeling euphoric from his success. But now, Iwaizumi was starting to feel that time was running out, and the true reality of what needed to be done to change the future. Oikawa’s life was incomparable to winning a friendly game of volleyball.

Iwaizumi scribbled his name messily on the sheet of paper that was placed on his desk, noting without interest that it was a general knowledge quiz. It was only after Michimiya poked him from behind and Iwaizumi noted the lack of paper on her desk that he realised it was a quiz done in pairs.

“Iwaizumi-kun, looks like you’re working with me today! Do you want to write, or do you want me to?” Michimiya looked at Iwaizumi with a bright, hopeful expression, playing with her mechanical pencil.

“Go ahead,” Iwaizumi said, moving the paper over to Michimiya’s desk as she smiled. One thing Iwaizumi had been finding annoying in class was the sudden need to write kanji that he had known for years in hiragana because he technically was not supposed to know it yet. It was nearly a relief to give the scribing duty to Michimiya, who would not need to compartmentalise her knowledge between what she learnt in high school, and what elementary schoolers knew.

“First question,” Michimiya chirped, looking straight into Iwaizumi’s eyes. “Who is the current prime minister of Japan?”

“Wow, this is pretty general knowledge,” Iwaizumi commented, racking his head for the answer. “Abe Shinzo." 

“Abe?” Michimiya said, looking confused. “Isn’t it Koizumi? Not sure on his full name though?”

“Ah, yes, sorry, Koizumi Jun-something right? I honestly can’t remember,” Iwaizumi hurriedly corrected, his heart rate picking up at the realisation of the mistake that he had just made. “Sorry, I didn’t sleep well last night.”

“No worries, Iwaizumi-kun!” Michimiya said with another smile, writing down a partial answer on the quiz sheet. “We’ll move to question two!”

Whilst Iwaizumi was outwardly hoping that he was looking calm and that Michimiya fell for his lie, internally he was beating himself up over that slip-up. Abe _was_ the current prime minister – in 2014. Just another mistake he was making this week. Iwaizumi half-heartedly helped Michimiya to complete the quiz, eager to get out of the classroom and clear his mind. Volleyball practice after school today, Iwaizumi knew from memory with a slight sense of comfort, would just be standard drills and repetition.

* * *

Iwaizumi’s thoughts during class on Thursday were starting to get increasingly panicked as he doodled, then crossed out, multiple plans of action for Friday in his notebook. By the time the final bell rang signalling the start of volleyball practice, the pages of his notebook were covered in pencilled scribbles that had been repeatedly crossed out. 

“Iwa-chan, are you alright?” Oikawa asked, the concern on his face genuine as they both headed towards the gym to get changed. “You look crankier than normal, and that’s weird, even for you.”

Of course Oikawa would notice. “I haven’t been sleeping that well, but I’m fine,” Iwaizumi said, repeating the same lie he had used earlier. Oikawa looked unconvinced, but dropped the question, for which Iwaizumi was thankful for.

Volleyball, Iwaizumi would also discover, was one of the worst places to get lost in a swamp of unrelated thoughts. After being hit by several volleyballs, missing way too many spikes, and then dramatically landing on his bottom after slipping, Iwaizumi was unable to convince anyone in the gym that he was feeling fine. Irihata made him sit out the rest of the practice, attempting to figure out what was wrong, but again Iwaizumi brushed it off as lack of sleep.

Oikawa ran straight towards him once practice finished, the worry clearly showing in his eyes. _I should be the one worrying about you_ , Iwaizumi thought, not registering what Oikawa was saying.

“Iwa-chan! _Hajime_!” Oikawa rarely, if ever, used Iwaizumi’s given name in a public environment, and that was enough to make Iwaizumi realise again that he was tuning out again.

“Sorry, Oikawa,” Iwaizumi said, picking up his bag. Oikawa looked at him anxiously as they started heading towards the change rooms, only looking away when his phone buzzed.

“Nee-chan is going to pick me up,” Oikawa announced to Iwaizumi, looking up and snapping his flip phone shut once he had finished reading the message he had received. “She reckons it’ll snow tonight, and maybe tomorrow too. Do you want her to drive you back too?”

Iwaizumi was about to decline, not in the mood to interact with two Oikawas at once, before a sudden memory resurfaced.

_“Nee-chan promised to pick me up and show me something special today! You worry too much, Iwa-chan, just go.”_

Oikawa’s sister. Iwaizumi felt a burst of extra energy at the realisation that she was probably the key to saving Oikawa tomorrow. All he needed to figure out was what she was planning with Oikawa tomorrow, and either find a way to get involved and stay near Oikawa, or convince her to reorganise. The former option was definitely the most plausible in Iwaizumi’s opinion.

“Yeah, I’ll come with you. Can I also stay over for a bit?” Iwaizumi vaguely recalled accepting Oikawa’s lift the first time too, however had headed straight back home that time. This time, he was going to actively change what he did.

“Of course, Iwa-chan! You’re always welcome.”

Iwaizumi huddled with Oikawa in the warm confines of the gym, waiting for Oikawa’s sister.

Oikawa Aimi entered the gym with a flourish, her long chocolate-brown hair identical in colour to her brother’s, but her smile felt warmer. Iwaizumi’s eyes were drawn straight to her massive stomach, highlighting how far into her pregnancy Aimi was, and admiring the baby that Iwaizumi knew would be Takeru.

“Hajime-kun, it’s great to see you again!” Aimi said in greeting, motioning for the boys to follow her. It had been a long time since Iwaizumi had last seen Aimi, he realised, having made minimal contact with her after Oikawa's death, and also feeling glad to see her.

“Oikawa-san, thanks for driving me back,” Iwaizumi replied, feeling Oikawa huddle closer to him as they stepped outside, the full force of the chilly air hitting them.

“I wish my Tooru-chan was this polite,” Aimi joked, looking at Oikawa who pulled his tongue back at her.

“I am polite,” Oikawa said sweetly. “Iwa-chan is the true brute here, you just haven’t seen his true colours.” Oikawa gave Iwaizumi a victorious look that dared him to make any physical contact. Iwaizumi realised that Oikawa had him exactly where he wanted him, as Iwaizumi itched to punch Oikawa for the comment, but could not.

“Yes, yes, Tooru-chan,” Aimi grinned. “Buckle up boys, safety first!”

The drive was quick, Iwaizumi alternating between staring out the window and staring at Oikawa, who for some reason was fidgeting in his seat. Asking Aimi about Friday would have to wait until he managed to get her alone. However, the opportunity presented itself earlier than Iwaizumi expected, and with no effort on his part thanks to Oikawa's bursting bladder.

“I’m home!” Oikawa yelled as he crossed the threshold of his house, carelessly throwing his school bag on the floor and hastily pulling off his shoes. “Toilet,” Oikawa elaborated just as Aimi opened her mouth to ask, madly sprinting up the stairs to the nearest bathroom.

“Tooru,” Aimi said affectionately with a chuckle, shaking her head, inviting Iwaizumi towards the kitchen after he slipped on a pair of slippers. “Is there anything you want to drink?”

“Do you have some black tea?” Aimi laughed at that, moving towards the cupboards.

“Strong as usual, I’m guessing?” Iwaizumi nodded, slightly embarrassed and feeling a flush burn onto his cheeks. Aimi was about twenty years old, and well, Iwaizumi was also technically twenty years old in terms of life experiences. Iwaizumi shook his head roughly, not wanting to think down that path.

Aimi started humming as she prepared the tea, turning on the kettle and getting a tea bag ready in a mug for both Iwaizumi and herself. Once the water was ready and boiling, Aimi poured the steaming water into both mugs, then handed one over to Iwaizumi.

“Are you going out with Oikawa after school tomorrow?” Iwaizumi asked Aimi as she took her first sip of tea. 

Aimi laughed, giving Iwaizumi a smile and resting her mug on the table behind her. “Tooru unable to hold in his excitement, huh?” She looked fondly down at her stomach, gently going over it with her hands. She looked at Iwaizumi with a conspiratorial look, and checking that Oikawa was still absent, motioned for Iwaizumi to come closer. Iwaizumi also put his cup down, doing his best to keep his face neutral as he approached her. Even at university, Iwaizumi did not get into this kind of proximity with females. At all.

“I have a check-up for the baby tomorrow,” Aimi said in a soft whisper, looking down at her stomach again. “Just to make sure everything is going alright. Tooru is extremely excited to be an uncle, and I thought I’d let him come with me and indulge in his newfound role.” 

“Oooh!” Iwaizumi couldn’t help the cry of excitement that came out of his mouth. “Do you know if it’s a boy or girl?” Aimi motioned for him to stay quiet as she leaned forward.

“He’s a boy, not sure what to call him yet though.” The sudden sound of footsteps alerted them both of Oikawa’s reappearance, and Aimi leaned forward further, mouth nearly touching Iwaizumi’s ear. “Would you like to come along tomorrow too? You’ll probably be as much his uncle as Oikawa.”

“Yes please, Oikawa-san!” Iwaizumi exclaimed loudly, Aimi moving away from him, and drawing Oikawa’s attention as he ran towards his sister.

“Nee-chan, you weren’t telling Iwa-chan anything embarrassing were you?” Iwaizumi really found it adorable when Oikawa pouted like that.

“Don’t you worry, Tooru-chan,” Aimi grinned. “Your dear Iwa-chan will be coming along to the special surprise your wonderful Nee-chan organised for you!”

“Really?” Oikawa looked as if Christmas had come early. Aimi nodded in response, giving Iwaizumi a sneaky wink as Oikawa hugged her. Iwaizumi understood the message behind the wink all too well. _Keep it secret_. Iwaizumi would, as Aimi had given him the perfect reason to hover around Oikawa all day on Friday, and change the future. Seeing Aimi again had reminded Iwaizumi that it was more than just Oikawa’s future on the line.

* * *

 Iwaizumi lay on his back, staring up blankly at the ceiling. The digital clock beside him read 12:30am, and despite having been in bed for hours he was unable to sleep. His mind was awake, far too awake despite him feeling exhausted, running through everything that he needed to do later that day.

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi whispered into the darkness, right arm reaching towards the ceiling. “I won’t let anything happen to you this time.”

The date on the display beside him read Friday, 10th December.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is definitely a slow build but I promise it’ll be important later! (my original plan completely went out the window with introducing everyone, as they all ended up with a life of their own). At least exams are over now, more time to write yay :D


	4. (2004) Friday

Iwaizumi was already awake when his alarm went off early Friday morning, his hand hitting the bedside table several times before he successfully silenced his alarm. Groaning, Iwaizumi nearly fell out of the bed, his body disoriented by his total inability to sleep. Iwaizumi had run through the plan a hundred times in his mind throughout the night. It was a simple plan really, and Iwaizumi did not know _why_ he was so worried, seeing as he had already made all of today’s necessary arrangements with Aimi. Today would be fine. Wait with Oikawa after school today. Get picked up by Aimi. Go to the doctor’s appointment. That was all to it. However, there was a lingering sense of unease lurking that Iwaizumi was unable to get rid of, no matter how many times he reassured himself.

Iwaizumi slapped his face with both hands, trying to snap himself out of his current mindset as he slowly started getting dressed. He knew exactly why he was simultaneously excited, nervous, and fearful. Iwaizumi’s previous Revivals had never been personal before, and as a result, the stakes for this particular Revival felt more real and terrifying than ever. It was not a nameless person he was trying to save this time.

“Hajime, you’re going to be late for school!” his mum yelled, her voice muffled by the distance and the bedroom door between them. Iwaizumi hurriedly shoved the last sock onto his foot, grabbing his school bag and running downstairs. His mood was not improved by the sight of Oikawa waiting impatiently downstairs, chewing on some milk bread whilst wondering around the house. He was wearing the ill-fitting alien-patterned beanie that had been the last thing that Iwaizumi had seen Oikawa wear.

The day passed by in a similar fashion. Iwaizumi felt his exhaustion catch up to him during class, finding himself nodding off several times before looking at Oikawa and being reminded of his plan to be executed later in the afternoon. This would cause his heart rate to pick up due to his anxiety, making Iwaizumi feel temporarily awake before slowing sliding back into slumber again and repeating the cycle. 

The final volleyball session for the week was a relief, as concentrating on volleyball helped to take Iwaizumi’s mind off things, and it was the first time all day that he managed to fully relax. This calmness remained after the courts were cleaned up and everyone got changed into their warmest winter gear.

“Heeeey, Iwaizumi, Oikawa, you wanna drop by Miya-san’s again?” Bokuto asked with excitement as they headed outside, everyone wincing at the sudden onset of cold air when they stepped out.

“I have something planned with Nee-chan,” Oikawa declared proudly, poking his tongue out at Bokuto. “And Iwa-chan is coming too.” Oikawa dragged Iwaizumi towards him to prove his point, with Iwaizumi giving Oikawa a rough chop to the head in response.

“Iwa, you look as pleased as usual,” Bokuto laughed, understanding the situation and giving the duo a wave in farewell. Spotting Matsukawa nearby, Bokuto practically flew towards him, no doubt asking him the same question he had asked earlier about visiting the bakery.

“Iwa-chan, does Nee-chan’s surprise have any food involved? I’m hungry,” Oikawa complained, the two of them stopping their walk and waiting by the school gates for Aimi to arrive. Iwaizumi ignored him, attention diverted by the all-too familiar surroundings around him. He could still remember how the tree branches swayed lightly in the wind, how Oikawa had repeatedly tried pulling his beanie down and failing each time as it slid back up.

“Please, Iwa-chan, just one hint!” Oikawa was practically wailing at this point, and Iwaizumi let a small smile cross his face as he pretended to consider Oikawa’s response. 

“I will give you a hint,” Iwaizumi began, watching as Oikawa grew quiet in anticipation and drawing out the silence. “If you give up milk bread for the rest of the week.”

“You’re so mean, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa punched Iwaizumi in the arm, but whether Oikawa’s punch was simply too weak or the impact had been lightened by the layers that Iwaizumi wore he was not too sure. Iwaizumi gave Oikawa an amused look.

“That’s not even a punch, Shittykawa.” Oikawa glared at Iwaizumi before punching him again in the arm, this time silently, as if to prove that he could indeed punch hard enough to elicit a reaction from Iwaizumi.

“That doesn’t feel any harder. In fact, I think your punches are getting weaker.” Iwaizumi flexed his free arm to prove his point, as Oikawa raised his arms in defeat.

“Nee-chan’s late,” Oikawa said sullenly, changing the topic and using his phone briefly to check the time.

Iwaizumi let out a snort of amusement. “Just be patient, Oikawa, she’s probably only one or two minutes late.”

 _“It’s all my fault, it’s all my fault, I was running late, I left him_ alone! _” Hajime had never been scared of Aimi before, but seeing her completely unkempt made him want to hide behind his mum and not come out._

Iwaizumi felt his amusement fade, a sudden realisation hitting him. Aimi running late may have been the catalyst for Oikawa disappearing – possibly bored, Oikawa may have wondered off and faced the encounter that would end his life. Suddenly nervous again, Iwaizumi quickly scanned his surroundings, not noticing anything unusual but suddenly on edge. He felt exposed and unsafe right now, and an urgent need to shelter Oikawa.

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi said roughly, hiding the unease in his voice. “I left my pencil case in the classroom. Inside of whining for the rest of the afternoon, come grab it with me.”

“You-what?” Oikawa said, suddenly distracted.

“I left my pencil case in class,” Iwaizumi repeated, hoping that Oikawa had in fact not seen him shove the very same pencil case into his bag earlier that day.

“Ahahahaha, oh Iwa-chan, do I need to pack your things for you?” Oikawa laughed, giving Iwaizumi a teasing expression but moving to follow Iwaizumi as he headed towards the school building. On any other day Iwaizumi would have probably given him a punch for that response, but grateful that Oikawa was indeed following him inside the school building, he refrained.

They climbed up the stairs in their school, Oikawa throwing additional barbs at Iwaizumi along the way. Iwaizumi retaliated with several punches, most of which Oikawa dodged whilst waving a peace sign with his fingers. This familiar routine, as well as the enclosed and relative safety of the school helped to soften Iwaizumi’s unease. A loud, familiar Star Wars ringtone suddenly interrupted the pair.

“Ah, Nee-chan! Hello?” Oikawa picked up his phone, Iwaizumi letting out a slight wince at the ringtone. “Yes, we’ll come down now! Iwa-chan was just being a dummy and left something behind!”

Oikawa hung up, stopping his movement up the stairs and leaning against the railing of the staircase. “Iwa-chan, I’ll wait here for you, hurry and grab your pencil case. Nee-chan is waiting outside!” Oikawa said, pointing vaguely at the direction where the school gates were located.

“Ok, ok, don’t you dare move, Oikawa,” Iwaizumi threatened, climbing up the rest of the staircase to their classroom floor so Oikawa would not get suspicious at the speed at which he returned. Once he was satisfied with the timing, Iwaizumi ran back down the stairs, making a show of zipping his bag in front of Oikawa.

“I got it,” Iwaizumi confirmed, noting Oikawa’s expectant look as he prepared to move. Iwaizumi was forced to go down two stairs at a time to keep up with Oikawa, who practically sprinted to the school gates. Oikawa had always been the type to love being in the know for a surprise, and not knowing what to anticipate was clearly eating him out from the inside. It was a sight that Iwaizumi found both hilarious and cute, were it not for the fact that he was now madly trying to chase Oikawa.

“Nee-chan!” Oikawa yelled once he spotted Aimi waiting at the entrance, running straight towards her. “Where are we going, where are we going?”

“Ah, be careful Tooru,” Aimi said, moving out of the way before Oikawa ran into her. “You shouldn’t heave Hajime-kun behind you know.” Aimi pulled off Oikawa’s beanie, ruffling his hair affectionately as Oikawa pouted in response.

“Oikawa-san,” Iwaizumi greeted politely as he reached the pair, Oikawa still struggling in his sister’s arms as she teased him.

“You ready to go?” Aimi asked him, giving him another wink. “See Tooru, it’s not that hard to wait.”

“Both of you, you’re always so mean to me,” Oikawa complained as he got into the car, looking sulky as he buckled himself in.

“Tooru-chan,” Aimi said with a grin, using the honorific she knew annoyed Oikawa. “That’s just how we show you that we love you.”

“Then Iwa-chan must hate me because he hits me all the time.” Aimi chuckled as she got the engine started, car moving and merging onto the main road. Oikawa threw Iwaizumi a petulant expression, clearly trying to make Iwaizumi feel guilty.

“That probably means your Iwa-chan loves you a lot, because I think he has a lot to deal with.” Aimi was completely straight-faced as she said that, Iwaizumi thoroughly enjoying her teasing and trying not to show it. “Hajime-kun, do you hate Tooru-chan?”

“Don’t get me started,” Iwaizumi said, emphasising a sigh and staring out the window. He could see their destination nearby, as well as the cheeky expression that Aimi suddenly gave him from the front mirror. Iwaizumi hoped that he never got on her bad side, as she definitely was a force to be reckoned with. Anyone that could get Oikawa on the verbal defensive was.

“Mean,” Oikawa whined, crossing his arms and putting on a defeated puppy expression. “So mean.”

“Tooru-chan, we’re almost there. Just behave for a few more minutes, ok?”

Oikawa instantly perked up at that, looking to Iwaizumi with new excitement. “Really? Where?” He stared intently out the window, also leaning over to Iwaizumi's side of the car and moving as close as he could to his window. “Wheeeere?”

Aimi laughed but remained silent, neatly parking the car in an available space. By the time the car fully stopped and the engine was turned off, Oikawa was practically bouncing in his seat, hand hovering over the seat belt buckle. 

“Tooru, we’re here. Boys, follow me.”

Oikawa and Iwaizumi walked behind Aimi as she led them into the building, going up several floors in the lift. Oikawa looked progressively more confused as they went up, the time between the pleading looks he gave Iwaizumi getting shorter as he narrowed down possible scenarios for the surprise.

“Iwa-chan, did Nee-chan use you as bait to get me to the doctors? I don’t want to go to the doctor! I’m not sick!”

“Oikawa, your sister isn’t taking you to see the doctor.”

“Iwa-chan, this is definitely the doctor’s.” Oikawa, Iwaizumi, and Aimi had arrived at the reception, Aimi confirming her appointment with the receptionist as Oikawa eyed the place suspiciously, firmly set in his beliefs.

Iwaizumi decided that this was probably the best time to tell Oikawa the truth before he started wailing bloody murder in the middle of the waiting room.

“Your sister is getting her baby checked up to make sure he’s healthy,” Iwaizumi said, Oikawa’s mouth opening in both shock and realisation.

“Really? And how do you know the baby is a boy?” Iwaizumi winced slightly, not sure if he should have kept that particular detail secret. However, his first goal had been accomplished, with Oikawa’s eyes wide with curiosity and excitement, and at no risk of sudden, loud outbursts.

“Tooru, Hajime-kun, follow me.”

They entered a small room, where a slender female doctor wearing glasses was waiting for them. Aimi closed the door behind her, instructing Oikawa and Iwaizumi to take the available seats. The doctor looked up from her notes, raising her eyebrow at the sight of Oikawa and Iwaizumi sitting in front of her.

“Who have you bought along today, Oikawa-san?” she asked, looking curious.

Aimi laughed, petting both Oikawa’s and Iwaizumi’s heads. “Sorry for the lack of warning Mayuri-sensei, this is my younger brother, Tooru and his best friend, Hajime. I thought it might be a fun experience for them." 

“I see, it’s not a worry! We’ll start off with just a general check of your blood pressure and weight, and then I’ll check how your baby is going.”

Oikawa fidgeted impatiently as Mayuri wrapped a cuff around Aimi’s arm, first measuring her blood pressure, and then instructing her to stand on some scales nearby. Iwaizumi shared his impatience. There was something about a new life coming into the world that ignited a sense of exhilaration within Iwaizumi, particularly as it was something he had never experienced firsthand.

“We’re getting there,” Mayuri said, clearly sensing the boys’ impatience and letting out a gentle smile. “Oikawa-san, could you stand over there, I would like to measure your belly size now. Tooru-kun, Hajime-kun, come along too.”

“Finally!” Oikawa exclaimed, sliding his chair back and standing next to Aimi. Iwaizumi stood beside him, taking the chance to examine Aimi’s stomach closely. It looked massive to him, and Iwaizumi had a hard time wondering how Aimi managed to move around, let alone follow a daily routine whilst carrying a second person around with her all the time.

“Tooru-kun, would you like to read the measurement on the tape?” Mayuri asked, motioning to the measuring tape she was holding with a tilt of her head.

“Thirty-four!” Oikawa declared, his face furrowed in concentration. “Is that a good number?”

Mayuri smiled, nodding. “Yes, that means that the baby is growing healthily.”

“Ooh, did you hear that Iwa-chan?”

“Oikawa, I think the better question was whether there was anyone that didn’t hear _you_.”

Oikawa rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at Iwaizumi. “You’re just jealous that you won’t have an awesome nephew.” 

“Next up is checking the baby’s heart rate. I’m sure you two know where your heart is?” Oikawa nodded in response to Mayuri’s question, placing his right hand over his heart.

“Here!”

“Very good! Again, I am just measuring to see if everything is normal.” Mayuri inserted both ends of a stethoscope into her ears, bending down onto her knees and moving the stethoscope around to better listen to the baby’s heart rate. She remained in that position for several seconds before removing the stethoscope from her ears and standing up.

“Is everything ok?” Oikawa asked, biting his lower lip. Mayuri smiled, waving Oikawa over.

“Do you want to have a listen?”

“Can I?” Oikawa asked Aimi with enthusiasm, putting on his most pleading expression. 

“Tooru, go ahead.” Aimi could not help the amusement that lit up her face as she looked at Oikawa, whose face was alight with the excitement that only came with a brand new discovery. 

Iwaizumi watched with fascination as Mayuri helped Oikawa adjust the stethoscope, and how Oikawa’s face changed when he finally heard the baby’s heartbeat.

“Iwa-chan, this is almost better than looking at the stars at night,” he breathed out in shock, the look of wonder clear on his face. “It’s so real.”

“It’s always exciting to hear a new life come into the world,” Mayuri commented, helping Oikawa to take off the stethoscope once he was done. “There’s also something else that’s really cool that I want to show you. Hajime-kun, Tooru-kun, put your hand on Oikawa-san’s belly.”

“I hope your hands aren’t too cold, boys,” Aimi joked as both boys placed their hands on her belly. Iwaizumi already realised what Mayuri was wanting them to experience, but asked the question anyway as he knew Oikawa would otherwise.

“What are looking for?”

Mayuri merely smiled. “You will know when you feel it.”

“Feel what?” Oikawa asked, staring at his hand where it rested on Aimi’s belly. “What are we-OOH!”

Iwaizumi felt it the same time that Oikawa did, the sudden movement where the baby had just kicked. Iwaizumi now understood what Oikawa had meant when he commented that it felt real – Iwaizumi had known that the baby inside Aimi’s stomach would grow up to be Takeru, but feeling the kick against his hand made it feel all the more real, and less of a mere statement of fact.

It was not just Oikawa’s life that Iwaizumi would be saving today. Takeru would never have needed to move to Tokyo if Oikawa survived, as there would be no reason why Aimi would be unable to look after him. Oikawa already had the opportunity to experience something he never did before Iwaizumi’s Revival.

“Because the baby is so big, he tends to move a lot. It makes it hard for your sister to sleep,” Mayuri commented, watching the looks of awe on Oikawa’s and Iwaizumi’s face. With a final nod, she returned to her desk, sitting down and pulling out a notebook.

“Everything looks good to me,” Mayuri declared, writing down some final notes. “Does a check-up same time next week work for you, Oikawa-san?” Aimi nodded in confirmation, Mayuri recording the new appointment on her calendar. She then turned towards Oikawa and Iwaizumi, both looking slightly disappointed that they would not be seeing any more for the day as they moved their hands away.

“Are you ready to look after your nephew, Tooru-kun?”

“Definitely,” Oikawa grinned, placing his arm around Iwaizumi’s shoulder. “I will teach him everything and he will look up to me, wanting to be as brilliant as his wonderful uncle Tooru!" 

“No, I think I’ll do a better job,” Iwaizumi said, unable to wipe the smile from his face. He would definitely enjoy seeing Takeru grow up.

Mayuri laughed at their responses, pulling out some lollipops from her drawer and handing one each to Oikawa and Iwaizumi. “I think you will both do well.” 

“Thank you again, Mayuri-sensei,” Aimi said, motioning for Oikawa and Iwaizumi to follow her out. “We’ll drop by the bakery for a quick snack, alright boys?”

“Miya-san’s?” Oikawa asked in confirmation, mouth already sucking his lollipop.

“Where else, Tooru?” Aimi replied, shaking her head slightly in exasperation.

The visit to Miyamoto’s Bakery was a quick one this time, with Aimi asking Iwaizumi in advance during the car ride what he was wanting to eat. Oikawa and Iwaizumi waited just outside the entrance of the store as Aimi went in, placing an order for milk bread, a red bean bun, and melon bread with the lady at the counter. Said food was quickly devoured in the drive back to Oikawa’s place, where Iwaizumi accepted Aimi’s offer to stay for dinner. Living next door to Oikawa really had its perks sometimes, because Oikawa’s mum made some of the best agedashi tofu ever, and Iwaizumi’s parents would always let him stay over.

“I’m home,” Oikawa announced, slipping off his shoes and roughly aligning them against the wall with his feet as he rushed inside. Iwaizumi took his time untying his shoelaces, neatly lining up his shoes and readjusting the positioning of Oikawa’s as well, before sliding his feet into a pair of slippers.

“Welcome back!” The voice of Oikawa’s mum called out from the kitchen, where the faint aroma of dinner could already be smelt. “How did the check-up go, Aimi?”

Iwaizumi followed Oikawa to the living room, leaving Aimi behind to discuss the results of the check-up with her mum.

“Oi, Oikawa slow down!” Iwaizumi grumbled, Oikawa deciding to increase his walk to a near-run inside his own house.

“I’m just so excited, Iwa-chan!” When Iwaizumi finally caught up to Oikawa, Oikawa was kneeling in front of the television, the cabinet beneath opened as he started to look through his collection of DVDs and videotapes.

“Excited for…?”

Oikawa stopped looking for several seconds, making eye contact with Iwaizumi and giving him his most serious expression. “I am going to be the world’s best uncle,” he announced, completely straight-faced, before turning back to the cabinet again. “Iwa-chan can be the second best,” Oikawa added as an afterthought.

Iwaizumi could not help the chuckle that left him. “Tell me that after your nephew crawls away from you, Shittykawa. What are you looking for anyway?” He noted the small pile of DVDs and videotapes that was starting to build behind Oikawa. Iwaizumi was hoping that Oikawa was not actually planning on watching all those movies tonight.

“The best alien and space movies made! I need to do my duty as the best uncle ever and teach my nephew everything there is to know about aliens!” Oikawa looked almost manic as his passion for space and aliens took over.

“Oh no,” Iwaizumi said, heart sinking as he noted one of the movie titles. He definitely saw Star Wars and E.T. in the pile, and he had seen E.T. enough times with Oikawa that he had no trouble recollecting the lines from the movie. “I am not letting you force anyone else to watch those movies, especially not an innocent baby.”

“Iwa-chan, these movies are _classics_ , you cannot possibly compare it in quality to that stomping dinosaur you call Godzilla. But then, you’re both brutes, so I suppose you liking Godzilla makes sense- OW IWA-CHAN THAT HURT!”

Oikawa gave Iwaizumi his most hurt expression as he rubbed his head where Iwaizumi had whacked it with Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. “You better not have damaged the tape inside, why do you always hit me so _hard_?”

“Because you deserve it.” However, Iwaizumi also bent down next to Oikawa, looking through the rows of tapes neatly lined up. “How much are you planning on watching tonight, Oikawa?”

Oikawa bit his lip, frowning slightly as he pondered his response. “Maybe we can get through the original trilogy tonight, and then tomorrow we can do Star Trek-”

“Does sleep fall anywhere in your plans tonight?” Iwaizumi had a feeling that it would not. Oikawa’s favourite movies were practically oxygen to him, and he would not hesitate in taking advantage of the weekend to binge watch them.

“You’re staying over the night, right Iwa-chan? Pleaseeeee?” Oikawa dodged Iwaizumi’s initial question, hoping to distract him.

“I’ll need to, because someone needs to make sure your eyes don’t turn square from watching too many movies at once.”

“Iwa-chan, I always knew you couldn’t live without me,” Oikawa beamed, taking Iwaizumi’s response as an affirmative. _You have no idea_ , Iwaizumi thought in response to Oikawa’s statement. It was true how little purpose he had had after Oikawa’s death, and he only truly noticed how bad it was when reliving his elementary school days. Iwaizumi had felt more alive the past few days than he had in the last ten years.

“Boys, it’s dinner time,” Oikawa’s mum announced, entering the room and interrupting their conversation. “You can watch movies after you have eaten at the table.” Turning to Iwaizumi with a smile, she also added “You’re staying over for the night, aren’t you Hajime-kun? I’ll give your mum a call.”

“Iwa-chan is going to watch movies with me tonight!” Oikawa confirmed with a grin, closing the cabinet door as he stood up and placed his chosen movies on the coffee table in front of the couch. “Let’s eat, Iwa-chan!” 

Dinner was rushed in Oikawa’s haste to return to his movie marathon, with Oikawa running back to the living room barely fifteen minutes after arriving at the dining table. Iwaizumi joined him several minutes later, thanking Oikawa’s mum for the food, before joining Oikawa and noting that Oikawa had not only bought down a blanket from upstairs, but also had several snacks ready for consumption on the coffee table.

Oikawa was currently sitting on the couch, nearly hiding underneath the blanket with only his head visible. On spotting Iwaizumi, he carefully pulled back the blanket beside him, allowing Iwaizumi to sit next to him on the couch before also hiding Iwaizumi within the warmth and relative security of the blanket.

“Ready, Iwa-chan?” Iwaizumi looked at Oikawa, captivated by the pure excitement and joy on his face that he rarely showed to anyone else. This was the Oikawa that was Iwaizumi’s childhood best friend, the nerdy Oikawa that knew more about space and aliens than anyone else.

“You’d play the movie even if I wasn’t ready, Oikawa.” Oikawa laughed in agreement, moving his arm up so the remote he was holding was just peeking out from above the top of the blanket, Star Wars starting to play on the television. 

As Star Wars continued playing on the television, Iwaizumi also could not help looking at the digital clock display sitting above it, particularly as they went through several movies. Whilst Iwaizumi knew that saving Oikawa had been down to making sure that he did not disappear after school, it was an additional layer of reassurance when the display reached midnight, highlighting the start of a new day. Oikawa had successfully reached the 11th of December.

 _I did it, Oikawa_ , Iwaizumi thought with both joy and relief. _I did it_. He had changed the events of the past. He had saved Oikawa.

With the very real warmth of Oikawa beside him on the couch, sharing the same blanket, Iwaizumi could finally let go of the memories that haunted him for ten years, the utter worry, then the mind numbing sense of raw loss that never faded over time. 

Iwaizumi closed his eyes as Oikawa snuggled closer to him, wrapping an arm around his torso.

* * *

Iwaizumi felt himself waking up to the sound of birds chirping, a thin ray of sunlight shining through the gap in the curtains. He was hyper conscious of the warmth he felt on his back, and of the arm wrapped tightly around his torso. Oikawa’s breathing was slow and steady, indicating that he was still asleep, and had Iwaizumi been able to turn around and look at Oikawa’s face, he was fairly certain that Oikawa would be drooling to an extent as well.

Iwaizumi closed his eyes, wanting to fall back into a light slumber and not disturb Oikawa, however he was suddenly aware of several voices coming from the kitchen. Opening his eyes again and eying the clock above the television reading seven am, Iwaizumi was wondering why Oikawa’s parents were even awake at this time of the day before also picking up the voices of his parents in the kitchen.

“So it’s true,” Oikawa’s mum said, Iwaizumi hearing a faint clinking noise that could have been a cup placed on the bench.

“Yes.” Iwaizumi heard a chair being moved, and the quieter noise of someone suddenly sitting down on it. Iwaizumi tried to sit up, managing to untangle Oikawa’s arm from his torso without waking him, and strained his ears to catch more of their parents’ conversation.

“…he played volleyball with the boys, doesn’t he? We need to tell them something convincing.”

“Iwa….Iwa-chan?” Sandwiched between Iwaizumi and the couch, Oikawa began to move, his brown hair poking up in all directions, eyes half open as he looked around the room with confusion. “What’s….going….on?” Oikawa let out a drawn out yawn.

Oikawa spent a second squinting at the clock before rubbing his eyes and looking back at Iwaizumi. “What time is it?” 

“Oikawa, your parents aren’t normally awake at seven in the morning on weekends, are they?” Iwaizumi whispered, motioning for Oikawa to keep his voice low. Oikawa shook his head, chewing on his bottom lip anxiously as he picked up on the voices from the kitchen.

“Your parents are here too.” Iwaizumi nodded in response, also seeing the unasked “Why?” in Oikawa’s eyes before motioning again for him to be silent. Both boys shuffled to the end of the couch, remaining silent and trying to hear as much as possible. Iwaizumi felt his heart rate pick up, dreading what he and Oikawa could overhear.

“Where did they find the body?” The voice of Oikawa’s mum choked as she asked the question, Oikawa’s eyes widening in shock as he met Iwaizumi’s eyes.

“Body?” Oikawa repeated, looking stunned. Iwaizumi strained his ears, not quite believing what he had just heard. 

“The creek near the school. I’m not sure what the police are thinking right now, I came over here once Nakamura-san called me.” Iwaizumi’s mum sounded hoarse, her tone defeated.

“Did she tell you anything else?” A frantic male voice that Iwaizumi recognised as Oikawa’s dad asked. Iwaizumi’s heart beat was now frantic as he wondered what was going on, hurriedly trying to remember something, _anything_ that would give him a hint as to what was going on. The current situation made no sense at all. Why was there a body in the creek? The very same creek that he had found Oikawa’s body in the first time?

“Matsukawa-kun never came home after school yesterday. His parents assumed he was out with friends, until they were told that he had headed straight home after school yesterday-”

“Mat-Mattsun?” It came out as a strangled cry, Oikawa looking like he was about to cry, and Iwaizumi covered Oikawa’s mouth with his hand, trying to keep him quiet. However, Iwaizumi’s hands were also shaking as the implications of what was said sunk in. This made no sense at all. Why was Matsukawa dead, why did he disappear yesterday of all days, it made no sense at all-

“Hajime? Tooru-chan?” Iwaizumi and Oikawa both looked up to see their parents standing next to the couch, having heard Oikawa’s earlier cry. Iwaizumi’s mum bent down, giving both boys a hug as they remained frozen from the shock. “I’m so sorry, so sorry you had to find out this way.” At this stage, Oikawa broke down, shaking and sobbing relentlessly into her chest.

_Hajime sat on the bench, staring aimlessly at the sky. The wind blew discarded rubbish across the footpath in front of him. Hajime would have completely ignored it, had a constant flapping noise not drawn his attention. Sparing a glance at the newspaper that was jammed roughly into the gaps in the bench, he noted the bold headline reading “BODY FOUND IN LOCAL PARK”, and a smaller photo beneath it of a familiar boy with curled black hair and thick eyebrows. Hajime had barely enough energy to process or truly care about what he had just seen._

It was weird how sometimes memories could become so deeply etched into the brain that every minute detail could be recalled, but there were others that disappeared into oblivion. Iwaizumi clearly remembered that the newspaper was dated the 18th December, 2004. He was fairly certain that he had seen Matsukawa at volleyball that week. Which meant that somehow in this Revival, he had died a week earlier this time.

 _Why?_ Iwaizumi thought. _Why?!_ But his subconscious knew the answer. The Iwaizumi of ten years ago had completely missed the bigger picture around him, completely focused on Oikawa and wallowing in his loss. He had only been vaguely aware of other happenings around him, but never pressed further for detail, accepting what he had been told. There had only been one major thing that Iwaizumi had changed yesterday.

Iwaizumi had saved Oikawa from dying on the 10th, but Matsukawa had somehow died instead. He buried his head in his mum’s chest, face dry but thoughts wild as Oikawa continued sobbing uncontrollably beside him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s time for angst now (fluff was fun whilst it lasted)! (٭°̧̧̧꒳°̧̧̧٭) And whilst I did some research on baby check-ups, I don't study med so I’m not how medically accurate it is lol. I also have nothing against Mattsun (he actually shares my birthday), but shit happens sometimes.


	5. (2004) Failure

Iwaizumi was frustrated by his total inability to properly remember the events of his childhood, head meeting his desk for probably the twentieth time that day. His parents had made him head home straight after he had overheard the conversation about Matsukawa’s death, starting his weekend with the memory of Oikawa crying desperately in his parents’ arms.

Iwaizumi used his time alone to untangle the mess that was the situation currently surrounding him. Beside him, resting on the desk, was a notebook where he had dumped everything that he could remember from the past down. He had split his memories into two columns, certain and uncertain, with the list of items on the uncertain column far outweighing those in the certain column. There were only two dot points in the certain column – that Matsukawa’s original death was definitely 17th December, and that it was connected to Oikawa’s original death due to both timing and location. However, Iwaizumi had no idea what this connection was, only that it had to be related to the fact that Oikawa’s location this time around had changed – Iwaizumi had made Oikawa follow him back into the school building. What would have happened if Iwaizumi had not made that lie back then?

“This is going nowhere,” Iwaizumi groaned, head again meeting the desk, his hand releasing the pen that he had been using to write with. A new thought crossed his mind as he recalled the newspaper that he found with the news on Matsukawa. Iwaizumi raised his head, grabbing his pen before it rolled off, and adding a new dot point to the certain column – he only heard about Matsukawa’s death in the newspaper, and not from school.

Playing with his pen as he continued thinking, Iwaizumi was truly missing the ability to google something and get a direct answer to his query. If only he had researched the events of his childhood as an adult! Iwaizumi looked back over at the uncertain column, where he had scribbled a vague recollection of reading an article about serial killings in Miyagi, in particular a case on three elementary schoolers being killed. Two victims, Iwaizumi knew for certain - Oikawa and Matsukawa. But he could not recollect the third, nor could he remember who was arrested for it, seeing as the killings had stopped soon after. That was probably both the school and parents working together to make sure the students did not make a big deal out of it.

Iwaizumi let out another groan. It felt as if the world were conspiring against him. And speaking of the world, Iwaizumi was wondering what was going on with his Revival. Normally Revival would keep Iwaizumi stuck in a loop until he had successfully managed to prevent the victim from dying, but Matsukawa was now dead again and nothing had happened. If that was the case, why had Revival sent him back in time then?

Iwaizumi threw the pen across the room in irritation, watching as it hit the wall and clattered towards the floor. His head once again returned to the desk, Iwaizumi this time without the energy to get back up again.

“I have no idea,” Iwaizumi said to the desk, voice muffled. “I have no idea what’s going on anymore.” He was not sure if he was eager for the weekend to be over or whether he dreaded it.

* * *

Iwaizumi’s alarm was an unwelcome start to the school week, its familiar noise irritating him more than usual. He moved to silence it, and rolled onto his back once it was off, staring at the ceiling in thought. Iwaizumi was grateful that there was no volleyball practice on Mondays, as he wanted to put off having to see everyone’s reactions to the news of Matsukawa’s death. It had already been a draining weekend.

“Hajime!” His mum knocked at his bedroom door several times, however made no move to come in. “You’ll need to get to school earlier today as your principal wants to have a chat to you and Tooru-kun before class.”

“Fine.” Iwaizumi did not have the energy to say much else, reluctantly getting out of bed.

“I will be coming with you, and so will Tooru-kun’s mum.” At that statement Iwaizumi looked at his bedroom door, imagining his mum behind it, and frowning slightly.

“Why are you coming along? It’s not like I don’t know where the principal’s office is.” This time, Iwaizumi’s mum did open the door, looking apologetic but Iwaizumi also recognising the stubborn look in her eyes.

“I’m coming along. Hurry up and get dressed, you don’t want to be late.” Iwaizumi did not put up a fight, quickly getting dressed and eating the breakfast that had been prepared for him.

The short drive to school was both silent and awkward, as neither Iwaizumi nor his mum felt able to voice their feelings. Iwaizumi also felt slightly uncomfortable as he headed towards the principal’s office with his mum, noting the curious looks on the faces of students as they walked past, including some of his classmates. Awaiting them at the end of their walk was Oikawa and his mum, who were waiting outside of the office for Iwaizumi to turn up.

Iwaizumi took in the sight of Oikawa, looking both defeated and deflated. His eyes also looked slightly pink, as if he had been crying earlier that morning. Iwaizumi felt something within him crack as he compared this Oikawa to the joyful, excited Oikawa that was around on Friday. Even though Iwaizumi had achieved his goal of saving Oikawa’s life on Friday, seeing Oikawa down like this made Iwaizumi feel as if he had achieved absolutely nothing. Seeing Oikawa like this made Iwaizumi want to scoop him up in a protective hug and never let him go.

“Oikawa, Iwaizumi, please come in and take a seat.” Iwaizumi reluctantly looked away from Oikawa as he entered the principal’s office, taking the seat closest to the window on his left, as his mum sat to his right next to Oikawa’s mum.

“I know better than to ask how you are all feeling, as I am sure that you are all feeling quite hurt and upset right now,” the principal began, resting his hands on the desk. “However there are a few things I need both of you to understand before you can go back to class.”

“What else is there to understand?” Oikawa snapped, looking down at his lap, lips quivering. “Mattsun is dead, and nothing is going to bring him back to life.” Oikawa sounded particularly bitter at that last statement, Iwaizumi hearing a faint undercurrent of blame in his voice.

“Tooru!” Oikawa’s mum reprimanded, sadness crossing her face as she placed her arm around Oikawa, trying to comfort him. “I’m sorry about that,” she said to the principal.

“It’s perfectly fine, Oikawa-san. This is something no ten year old should need to deal with.” Turning his attention back to Iwaizumi and Oikawa, the principal continued speaking. 

“Your classmates are unaware of what happened to Matsukawa on Friday. All of the parents have been notified of course, however I have felt that it is in the best interests of the students for this not to become general knowledge now until we know exactly what happened to Matsukawa.”

“So you’re lying to everyone?” Iwaizumi interrupted, scowl crossing his face. This probably was one of the reasons why Iwaizumi had such a difficult time recollecting any murders that had happened in his childhood. Had Oikawa not been killed, it was likely that Iwaizumi may never have actually learnt the truth about what was going on. Finding out about Matsukawa had been a sheer accident from reading that discarded newspaper. Iwaizumi’s scowl got deeper at that thought.

“For now, students have been told that Matsukawa has suddenly left due to a family emergency. Once we have full confirmation from the police as to what happened, we will inform everyone when the school term resumes next year. We don’t want too many stories or rumours spreading that may upset people.”

“That’s still lying!” This time it was Oikawa who interrupted, and he also looked like he was about to cry. “It’s like you’re trying to make everyone forget Mattsun!”

“Tooru, please.” Oikawa’s mum hugged him tighter, and she also looked like she was going to cry. Oikawa’s face lost some of its anger as he accepted his mum's embrace. “I know you’re upset but sometimes you just have to accept the choices that adults make to look after you. Do you want everyone in class to be upset like you?”

Oikawa’s lip quivered, eyes nearly covered by his brown hair. “No,” he said quietly, barely audible. “I don’t.”

Iwaizumi himself was not sure how to feel. On one hand, he felt that it was wrong to withhold the truth – shouldn’t everyone have the right to know what happened? But his hindsight from his own experiences growing up having lost a close friend also told him that students could avoid the angst that had plagued him if they did not learn the truth. Iwaizumi sighed, conflicted. No wonder their parents had also been invited to the meeting.

“I know this will be hard,” the principal continued. “But I want the best for all the students. They will all learn the truth eventually, but not right now. Will you two be able to help me out?”

Oikawa nodded once, silently, before going back to staring at his knees.

“Ok,” Iwaizumi answered. It was not like either he or Oikawa had much choice in the matter anyway.

“Again, I am really sorry to ask this of you two. If at any time you need to talk to someone, please feel free to talk to your teacher Saito-sensei, or come in here to see me. And of course, there are your parents.”

“Can I stay home today?” Oikawa asked quietly. “Everyone will notice that I’m upset today and they’ll ask me questions and I’ll probably cry.”

“Of course,” the principal said. “Same to you, Iwaizumi. If you both need the rest of today off, that’s fine. I would like to see you in tomorrow though, if possible.”

Oikawa’s mum stood up, also pulling Oikawa up. “If that is all, I will be taking Tooru home now.”

Iwaizumi’s mum also stood up, Iwaizumi standing up beside her. “We’ll be leaving as well. Thank you for your support.”

Iwaizumi felt numb as they all left the school in silence, heading towards the car. He had no idea what he was going to do next.

* * *

Both Iwaizumi and Oikawa did end up going to school on Tuesday, however their methods of coping with their current situation varied vastly. Iwaizumi felt it was easier to isolate himself from his classmates and blame it on a fake illness he said he ‘felt approaching’, which ensured that everyone stayed away from him without being too suspicious or probing further. However, Oikawa had taken the opposite approach and immersed himself in the company of his classmates, acting as if there was nothing wrong. But only Iwaizumi, used to years of hanging around Oikawa, could see how fake and forced his exterior was. He could see Oikawa constantly struggling to keep up his positive act, and read his turmoil like an open book.

It got to the stage that by the time volleyball practice ended on Tuesday afternoon, Iwaizumi was sorely tempted to beat Oikawa up and get some sense into him. He could already see the damage that bottling up his emotions to that extent was doing to Oikawa. Iwaizumi made sure that no one else was within a hearing vicinity before confronting Oikawa, pulling him to the side as they walked towards the exit of the school.

“Oikawa, you can’t keep doing this all week. I don’t want to watch you fall apart.”

Oikawa turned away from Iwaizumi, looking to the side. “Iwa-chan, I’m fine. No one thinks I’m acting weird or anything.”

Iwaizumi grabbed the front of Oikawa’s jumper, trying to get him to meet his eyes and just _understand_. “Shittykawa, I can see how fake it is. I can see how much you’re hurting!”

“It’s just for the rest of the week ok? I said I’m fine!” Oikawa had raised his voice to the point where Bokuto and Nakumura walking nearby had heard, the pair approaching them with curiosity. 

“Wow, this is a different kind of fighting between the two of you,” Nakamura commented, eyes narrowed slightly as he continued to examine the pair.

“Really?” Bokuto interrupted, rapidly looking between Iwaizumi and Oikawa, both currently staring at each other stubbornly. “Actually, you two look like Pokemon trainers about to fight each other. Fighting over a gym?” Bokuto’s joke fell flat as both Iwaizumi and Oikawa turned to look at him. Bokuto raised his arms in defeat. “Ok ok, maybe not, why don’t we go to Miya-san’s and get something to eat? That always makes me happy when I’m down.”

“I’m fine, Ko-chan,” Oikawa said, moving away from Iwaizumi. “I’m not that hungry. I’m going home. See you all tomorrow!”

“Oikawa, wait-” Iwaizumi moved forward to follow Oikawa, but unexpectedly felt someone grab onto his jacket, pulling him back.

“He looks like he wants to be alone,” Bokuto said, sounding depressed, his hair looking as if it had drooped several centimetres in response.

“That’s what I’m worried about,” Iwaizumi exclaimed, successfully breaking free from Bokuto’s grip before being stopped by Nakamura, who stood in his path.

“You guys are besties, but sometimes we need space, Iwaizumi,” Nakamura said, staring at the direction that Oikawa left in.

Iwaizumi deflated at Nakamura’s words, seeing the truth. Had Oikawa been on edge because Iwaizumi was constantly hovering and observing him? Was Iwaizumi just overanalysing the situation and seeing things worse than they were? Iwaizumi realised that his unique perspective as a twenty year old may have skewed the way he saw things.

“You guys are right.” Iwaizumi swallowed hard, still unable to swallow his anxiety over Oikawa, but deciding to let it drop for today. “Bokuto, Nakamura, if you’re still going to Miya-san’s I’ll go with you.” Maybe handling the situation this way was better for both Oikawa and Iwaizumi.

“That’s the spirit,” Bokuto exclaimed, regaining his usual energy as his eyes lit up at the prospect of food. “To Miya-san’s!”

Iwaizumi tried to maintain this mindset for the rest of the week, giving Oikawa his space both inside and outside of the classroom, as well as trying not to analyse his behaviour too thoroughly. However, even whilst trying to give Oikawa the benefit of the doubt, he still felt as if Oikawa was crumbling behind his positive façade. It was even more difficult to leave Oikawa alone as his instincts were screaming at Iwaizumi to confront him again, but he had no one else who knew the truth about Matsukawa’s disappearance to discuss their situation with.

Bokuto noticed his foul mood during Wednesday’s practice.

“Hey Iwa.” Iwaizumi was packing his sports uniform back into his bag when Bokuto approached, looking slightly apprehensive. Iwaizumi also noted that Oikawa was nowhere to be found, having gotten changed and promptly leaving once practice had concluded. “You alright? Normally you’re like grrrrr, but today you’ve been like GRRRRR, if you know what I mean?” Bokuto waved his arms and frowned in an attempt to mimic what he believed were Iwaizumi’s angry faces.

“No, and my face doesn’t look like that, Bokuto.” Iwaizumi was not sure whether to be amused or annoyed at Bokuto’s attempts to imitate him.

“Iwa, yes it does,” Bokuto said matter-of-factly, attempting to give off an air of knowledge. “Oikawa explained it to me, and I quite agree. But mate, you seem more…angry than usual?” Bokuto looked thoughtful before muttering under his breath, “Is angry the right word for it? Damn.”

Iwaizumi sighed, knowing what Bokuto was getting at. “I’m alright. But yeah, I’ve also been worried.”

“About Oikawa?” Iwaizumi felt as if Bokuto’s owl-like eyes were boring into his, intense. For all of the childish air that Bokuto gave off, Iwaizumi currently felt as if he were prey sighted by a hunter, and that he would be unable to hide the root of the issue from Bokuto. 

“Yes,” Iwaizumi confirmed, zipping up his sport’s bag and slinging it onto his shoulder. “I generally worry about Oikawa, but I’m worrying about him more.”

Bokuto let out a noise of agreement as he followed Iwaizumi out of the gym. He was silent for several seconds, looking as if he were thinking about something, before looking to Iwaizumi with a serious expression on his face.

“You were on the other side of the court so you may not have seen, but Oikawa’s legs have a lot of scratches, like he climbed up a tree and fell off it or something. Maybe he was walking through some bushes.”

“What?” Iwaizumi did not attempt to hold back the exclamation that came out of his mouth.

“They weren’t there yesterday. Oikawa also said he was heading home early again.” Bokuto let out a drawn out sound of frustration, dramatically running this hand through his hair. “I don’t know what else to tell you, Iwa.”

“No, you’ve helped out a lot, thanks Bokuto!” Iwaizumi had a horrible suspicion in the back of his mind as he farewelled Bokuto, running straight back towards Oikawa’s place. He was out of breath when he knocked on Oikawa’s door, unsurprised to see his mum answer.

“Oh, Hajime-kun! You’re home early today! Is Tooru not with you?”

Iwaizumi bit back the curse that he wanted to let out as his suspicion was confirmed. What the hell was Oikawa up to now?

* * *

Iwaizumi had been ready to confront Oikawa about what was going on sometime at school on Thursday, but when the opportunity presented itself at the end of the day as they left practice, he found himself unable to act as negative thoughts entered his mind. Ninety-five percent of the time, Oikawa loved having Iwaizumi’s attention and basked in it. The other five percent of the time though, Oikawa was pricklier than a bed of roses. In this case, Iwaizumi feared that his question would trigger Oikawa’s abrasive mood. He thought about his options for several seconds before throwing caution to the wind, thinking that there was not much else he could lose anyway.

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi called out, pulling Oikawa roughly to a stop. “Where have you been going after practice this week?”

“Iwa-chan, where else do you think I’ll go? I went home.” Oikawa had that smile on his face again, the fake one that irritated Iwaizumi to no end.

“Oikawa, I went straight home after practice yesterday, and you weren’t there.” Iwaizumi gave Oikawa several seconds to respond, however when Oikawa showed no signs of responding Iwaizumi continued, hoping that Oikawa would not react too poorly. Oikawa’s face still wore that smile, but Iwaizumi could see it slowly fade by the second. “Bokuto noticed that you suddenly have a lot of scratches. Oikawa, I don’t want you to get hurt-”

“Hurt, Iwa-chan?” Oikawa’s face lost all traces of his smile as he went on the offensive. “I’m already _hurt_ , Iwaizumi.” Iwaizumi could not conceal the shock that crossed his face, feeling as if he were slapped. Oikawa _never_ called Iwaizumi by his name. Never. “I’m just trying to do something about the situation, because you clearly aren’t!”

“What do you mean _doing something_ , Oikawa?” Despite himself, Iwaizumi also started to feel the anger pooling within. What did Oikawa think he could do that Iwaizumi could not? At the very least, Iwaizumi had a good ten years of life experience that Oikawa did not, and knew a lot about the horrors of the world that Oikawa was still sheltered from.

Oikawa glared back at Iwaizumi. “The school doesn't want everyone to know about Mattsun because someone _killed_ him! He didn’t just fall into the creek!”

“So you want to find the killer? Are you an idiot?” Iwaizumi was glad that there was no one around, their argument definitely reaching the yelling stage. Oikawa looked as if there was something he dearly wanted to say to Iwaizumi, but was refraining purely by biting down on his lip.

“I know what I’m doing. But you never trust me when I’m doing things on my own, so I won’t bother convincing you, _Iwa-chan_.” Oikawa’s voice was practically dripping with venom as he stormed off. Iwaizumi was frozen, unable to move and cursing how the confrontation had turned out. He had just made it worse. Significantly worse. He had seen the tears in Oikawa’s eyes as he left.

* * *

Iwaizumi was glad that Friday was the last school day of the year, because he was not sure how much longer he could take the current situation. The daily, internal turmoil. And of course, Oikawa himself was an entirely different issue altogether. Not only was Oikawa completely ignoring him, Iwaizumi could do nothing much but watch Oikawa’s internal self-destruction whilst completely faking his mood around his classmates. The holidays would hopefully provide an opportunity to fix everything that had gone dreadfully wrong.

Iwaizumi spent the day feeling as if his head was buried in mud with the sluggish pace in which the day was passing by. The only time he interacted with anyone all day was when Michimiya grabbed his arm on the way out to lunch, her face looking determined.

“Iwaizumi-kun,” she began, a tinge of nervousness in her voice. However, the look in her eyes was anything but, and the intensity at which she looked at him made Iwaizumi feel uncomfortable for some reason. “Good luck with Oikawa-kun.”

“What?” Iwaizumi’s voice came out hoarse, slightly raspy from how little he had spoken that day.

“You’re fighting with Oikawa-kun, aren't you?” Michimiya elaborated. “I hope you two make up.”

“Oh. Yeah, we are.” Michimiya and Iwaizumi looked at each other awkwardly for several seconds before Iwaizumi spoke again. “Thanks for the luck, I’ll need it.”

But Iwaizumi never had the chance to talk to Oikawa again that day. He figured that sometime before or after volleyball practice was the best chance to catch Oikawa alone, however when Irihata blew the whistle that signalled the start of practice, Oikawa was not there. Iwaizumi practiced with one eye on the door, waiting for Oikawa to arrive, but he never turned up. This alone made Iwaizumi extremely worried, as there was very little that would be above volleyball on Oikawa’s priority list. Oikawa would not simply skip a session of volleyball unless he had a very good reason to do so.

Iwaizumi spent the walk back home increasingly worrying about Oikawa. He really hoped that Oikawa did not somehow injure himself doing whatever he was doing to the point where he was unable to get home himself. Iwaizumi pulled his phone from out from his pocket, looking at it for several seconds before deciding to contact Oikawa. Oikawa loved using his phone and rubbing in the superiority of his model over Iwaizumi’s, and hopefully if Iwaizumi were to contact him with it for once, Oikawa might be willing to pick up.

Iwaizumi dialled Oikawa’s number, hoping that the ringing that he was currently hearing would be replaced by the sound of Oikawa’s voice. Iwaizumi held the phone against his ear until the ringing was replaced by a beep and an automated voicemail message. Iwaizumi ended the call in frustration, pressing redial but knowing deep down that Oikawa would not pick up.

“Damn it!” Iwaizumi also took the chance to let out a few swear words that he had picked up during his teenage years.

Iwaizumi gave up on calling, instead typing up a quick text message for Oikawa. Hopefully he would at least look at the message and be willing to have a chat with Iwaizumi later on. Iwaizumi set the phone to vibrate and shoved it back into his pocket, continuing his walk back home. As he walked, a nearby sign across the road caught his attention, and Iwaizumi stopped in his tracks as he realised what location was written in block letters across it. It was the park that Matsukawa’s body was found in the first time Iwaizumi was ten.

The sun was starting to set as Iwaizumi approached the park, the clear sky painted in various shades of orange and red. However, the sheer brightness of the sun itself as it sunk into the horizon made the red surrounding it look ominously blood-red in colour. Iwaizumi felt himself stop at the entrance of the park, suddenly finding it difficult to breathe, as if his lungs had suddenly shrunk in his anxiety. The pounding of his heart felt abnormally loud as Iwaizumi scanned the landscape, not initially noticing anything out of place. 

He forced himself forward, mulch crunching beneath his feet as he moved, wanting to confirm that the park was empty. There was no logical reason at all why Oikawa would be here at all, but Iwaizumi felt that he may as well check due to its' proximity to their homes. Iwaizumi refused to let himself think of the other reason why he wanted to check this particular park, the true reason that had appeared due to a memory of seeing a certain newspaper article.

 _There’s nothing here_ , Iwaizumi thought. _As there shouldn’t be_. Oikawa was probably home by now.

Iwaizumi turned to leave the park, before noting a misshapen mound in the surrounding bushes, unlike the way that plant foliage normally stuck up from the soil. Unable to identify the mound in the rapidly approaching darkness, Iwaizumi approached slowly, convincing himself it was probably a bag of rubbish that someone had dumped. But the mound was not anywhere as round as a bag of rubbish should be, it was rather long and narrow, almost shaped like a-

Iwaizumi refused to let himself register what he was looking at until he was standing right next to it. He could almost pretend Oikawa was sleeping were it not for the fact that he was abnormally still, and that his neck had dark marks that Iwaizumi could still see, even with the poor lighting. 

Deep down, from the moment he had spotted the irregularity, he knew what it was. _Who_ it was.   

Iwaizumi's knees buckled beneath him, his hands grabbing wildly at Oikawa's still-warm wrist. Iwaizumi could not help the wetness that suddenly spilled from his eyes, the choked gasps that he barely registered originating from him, as he buried his head in Oikawa’s chest and pulled roughly at Oikawa’s clothing, screaming.

He stayed there until his voice gave out, until the surface he was resting his face on was soaked from his tears. He ignored the loud crackling noises that seemed to surround him, the unusual brightness that he could see around him out of the corner of his eyes. Iwaizumi just felt so _so_ numb, so spent, so empty. 

It was over. He had failed.

* * *

Iwaizumi was not sure when he had moved away from Oikawa, but when he came to, he found himself standing in the middle of an unfamiliar alleyway, standing in near-darkness. He was also slightly out of breath, and nearby he registered the sounds of sirens going off. Thinking that maybe the police had come to investigate the crime scene in the park, Iwaizumi started to move forward but stopped after several seconds, suddenly registering his height compared to that of a nearby street sign. He would have no problem touching the sign itself with his current height. There was no way he could have done that as a ten year old.

With an increasing sense of trepidation, Iwaizumi felt for the wallet he knew he would find in the pocket of his too-tight coat, and opened it. His student ID from Tokyo University stared back at him, forcing him back to reality. Iwaizumi’s breath suddenly hitched in his throat. He was back in 2014. Oikawa was dead again. He was- he was- what was he doing? The noises from the sirens suddenly reminded of the events that had led to his Revival back to 2004, the events that felt that had happened a lifetime ago. Iwaizumi ignored the buzzing that he suddenly felt in his other coat pocket, completely drowning in his thoughts.

He was running away from a crime scene. Dead body in the car. Takeru. There was no way that anyone would believe that he did not kill him. Who would believe him about the rabbit that he had crashed into? No one sane. They would probably all think that Iwaizumi Hajime, the lonely, but high achieving maths major at Tokyo University, finally snapped.

Feeling the adrenalin pulse into his veins, Iwaizumi let his instincts take over as he ran, away from the blaring noises of the sirens. He did not care that he had no knowledge of this particular neighbourhood. He did not care that running would probably achieve nothing. Oikawa was dead again, Takeru was dead, he had completed and utterly _failed_ , why should he even care what would happen to him? It was all over, wasn’t it? Revival dumping him back in the mess that he had initially escaped from was the clear response.

Iwaizumi felt the same buzzing coming from his pocket earlier, and this time he figured out it was coming from his phone. Slowing his run to a brisk walk, Iwaizumi picked up the call, not caring that it came from an unknown number, letting himself catch his breath for several seconds before responding.

“Iwaizumi speaking,” Iwaizumi finally answered, voice defeated but not really caring how he sounded.

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end of the call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is probably the most angst I've ever written at once...it wasn't even meant to be that much. Also hope that Bokuto turned out alright, he's not as easy for me to write as Iwa or Oikawa. 
> 
> On the upside, things can’t exact get worse for Iwaizumi (hopefully). Next chapter will take a little longer to come up as I’m going off to a ski trip for a few days :)


	6. (2014) Observer

“Iwaizumi? Are you alright?” Iwaizumi picked up a hint of anxiety from the female voice on the other end of the call, remaining silent for several seconds as his brisk walk slowed into a more relaxed pace. He found the voice vaguely familiar but was unable to place where he recognised the voice from.

“Iwaizumi?” the voice repeated, the panic clearer in her voice this time. Iwaizumi swallowed, the back of his throat feeling dry as he attempted to reply, still unable to recognise the voice.

“Who is this?” Iwaizumi finally asked, tone neither hostile nor friendly. His walk had taken him away from the residential area that he had initially fled to and towards the edge of a slow-moving river. Above him, Iwaizumi could hear the sounds of cars rushing by as they sped across the bridge. The bridge also blocked out the light cast out by the moon, creating a dark shadow for Iwaizumi to hide in as he waited for a response.  

“It’s Michimiya Yui. We were in the same class in elementary school. Do you still remember me?” Iwaizumi let out a grunt of recognition as he eventually connected the voice on the phone with the cheerful, brown-haired girl in his class.

“Yeah. You sat behind me.”

“Where are you right now?” Iwaizumi looked around his surroundings, looking for any signs that he could use to definitively confirm his location. However, now that the adrenalin rush from his mad escape was wearing off, Iwaizumi felt his guard and sense of suspicion rise. As far as he remembered, after elementary school he did not have any contact with Michimiya.

“Why do you want to know?” Iwaizumi clutched his phone tighter, ready to hang up if needed.

Michimiya took a deep breath before responding. “You’re on the evening news as a suspect for murder. But I know you didn’t do it.”

“You see my name in the news, remember me from elementary school, and decide to call me even though I’m on the run?” Iwaizumi could not help the astonishment that leaked out from his voice, nerves on edge as he attempted to figure out Michimiya’s motives. “We weren’t even that close.”

“I will explain everything if you let me!” Desperation was clear in Michimiya’s voice as she replied, volume rising. “Please, tell me where you are. I live in Tokyo right now, so I can pick you up.”

“How do I know you won’t just turn me into the police?” Iwaizumi was not sure why he was so reluctant to tell Michimiya where he was. If he truly did not care about what was going to happen to him, what would be the harm in telling?

Another drawn out breath from the other end of the line. “Because of Oikawa. Someone who tried so hard to save his best friend wouldn’t kill another child that age.”

“What?” Iwaizumi gasped, feeling like he had been punched in the gut. It was the absolute last thing that he had expected Michimiya to say. Iwaizumi started shaking, wetness leaking out from the corner of his eyes, arm dropping to his side. He spent several seconds trying to calm himself down, before forcing his arm back up so he could speak. Michimiya remained silent as she waited for him to respond.

“I’m under a bridge,” Iwaizumi began, sounding resigned and leaning against the supporting cement pillar, sliding down until he was in a seated position. “Next to what I think is the Arakawa River.”

“Anything else?” Michimiya prompted, losing the panic that was in her voice earlier.

Iwaizumi forced his muddled brain to think, trying to recall any signs that he had seen on the drive back to Takeru’s place.

“Near Kosuge…I think.”

“That’s all I need. Iwaizumi, please stay where you are, I’ll be there soon ok?” Michimiya’s voice was both positive and reassuring, however Iwaizumi felt oddly disconnected as he agreed, holding the phone to his ear long after the call had ended.

Without the phone call and Michimiya to distract him, and now that Iwaizumi had finally stopped moving around, his mind was now able to fully focus on his current situation. The reality of everything that had happened, past and present sank in fully, the shaking and sobs that Iwaizumi had initially managed to repress returning with a vengeance. The image of Oikawa dead again in that park was fully burned into his retinas, even as he sobbed and wrapped his arms around his knees he could not get that image out of his head.

Iwaizumi was not aware of time passing until he felt a gentle touch on his back, feeling another presence rub his back in an attempt to comfort him. Michimiya placed one arm around Iwaizumi’s shoulder and the other around his waist, attempting to hoist him up from his position on the ground and failing. She let out an anxious chuckle as Iwaizumi looked up, eyes red and face still streaked with tears.

“I don’t think I can pick you up,” she said nervously, avoiding eye contact as she looked around at anything but Iwaizumi. “You’re much bigger than I remember!”

Iwaizumi felt himself raise an eyebrow as he looked directly at Michimiya, seeing her as a twenty year old for the first time. He was grateful for the fact that his tears had mostly dried up, but knew that he would still come across as a massive mess to Michimiya.

“Not-not that it’s a bad thing…being big,” Michimiya said weakly, interpreting Iwaizumi’s blank face as annoyance or possibly anger. Iwaizumi felt a small trace of a smile appear as he slowly stood up, feeling an ache in his legs as he moved them.

“It’s fine,” Iwaizumi said once he was fully standing. “What are we doing?”

“I’ll take you to my place for now,” Michimiya replied, motioning for Iwaizumi to follow her as they walked out of the shadow cast by the moonlight. “I know everything must be really difficult for you, but I promise that I’ll tell you everything that I know.”

Iwaizumi hesitated when they arrived at Michimiya’s parked car several minutes later, not fully willing to get in. Whilst Michimiya had not yet proved untrustworthy, she had not fully explained her motives either and why she was willing to go as far as she was currently to help Iwaizumi out.

“Why though?” Iwaizumi asked as Michimiya unlocked her car. “Why do you want to help me? You do realise what could happen to you if they find me, right?”

Michimiya made eye contact with Iwaizumi, her eyes blazing with determination. “I know exactly what can happen.” Michimiya paused, taking a deep breath to steady herself. “But I want to help you save Oikawa.”

“Oikawa’s dead,” Iwaizumi said automatically, taking a step back and shaking his head as the dreaded memories started to flood back. “He’s been dead a long time.”

Michimiya opened the passenger door of her car. “For most of us,” she said cryptically, her body language pleading with Iwaizumi to get into the car. “Please Iwaizumi, this is not a chat we want to have out here. The police are still lurking around this area.”

Iwaizumi gave Michimiya one last look before finally getting into the car, hoping that he had not temporarily removed himself from one mess only to find himself into another that was worse.

The drive was initially silent, with Iwaizumi staring out the window and looking at the sky, the twinkling stars reminding him of Oikawa. He also felt Michimiya’s eyes on him as she checked on him using the car mirrors as they drove. Iwaizumi noticed the tension in Michimiya’s hands as she gripped the steering wheel, and felt that sooner, rather than later, that she would finally let out what was on her mind. 

“Iwaizumi,” she said softly. “What exactly happened?”

Iwaizumi looked at Michimiya as she drove, letting out a resigned sigh. He had known this question was coming.

“I was tutoring a new student,” Iwaizumi began, determined to keep the details brief and to the point. He did not want to linger on this discussion any longer than he really had to. “On the way home, my car hit a rabbit that I’m fairly certain was deliberately run into the road.” Iwaizumi closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath as he tried not to let the painful memory overwhelm him. Despite this, he felt new tears welling up again.

“I went to check what was going on and when I went back to the car he-” Iwaizumi felt his voice choke up, unable to continue. Images started flashing uncontrollably through his mind. “He was-”

“That’s enough, Iwaizumi,” Michimiya said, turning off the main road and moving into a quieter residential area. “I think I get the picture.”

“He reminded me of Oikawa,” Iwaizumi said in a gasp, clutching his head in his hands. “I just saw Oikawa and I panicked and ran because not again, _not again-_ ”

“Iwaizumi!” Michimiya forced the car into an abrupt stop, the recoil momentarily snapping Iwaizumi out of his panicked state as his hands reached out for the nearest thing he could reach to steady himself. Iwaizumi registered the grey interior of a carpark as he raised his head, sucking air into his lungs rapidly as Michimiya looked at him with concern.

“Are you a bit better now?” Michimiya started rubbing his back again, regret in her eyes. “I shouldn’t have asked.”

“No…. it’s fine.” Iwaizumi closed his eyes and rested his head on the back of the car seat. “He was Oikawa’s nephew too. Sounds like his entire family fell apart after Oikawa died.”

Michimiya looked startled as she turned off the engine and unbuckled her seat belt.

“We’re here. This is the parking for my complex.” She opened the glove box and threw Iwaizumi a scarf and a face mask, which he caught whilst giving her a questioning expression. “There are cameras in the corridor. You can pretend you’re sick or something when you’re following me up.”

Iwaizumi nodded, slowly sliding out of the car and adjusting the scarf and mask so it covered most of his face. He followed Michimiya up the lift to her apartment, mind focused on one main statement he recalled Michimiya saying earlier. _I want to help you save Oikawa_.

Michimiya threw her keys onto the nearby kitchen bench as they entered her apartment, Iwaizumi slowly making his way to the nearby couch and sitting down on it with a gentle plop. Iwaizumi stared blankly at the nearby coffee table for several minutes as he registered noises coming from Michimiya’s kitchen. She eventually emerged with two ceramic mugs in her hands, both steaming as she gently set it on the coffee table.

“I think we’ll need this tonight.” Michimiya pushed one of the mugs towards Iwaizumi, who took a small sip from it, feeling the warm liquid make its way throughout his body. Iwaizumi let the steam from the mug warm up his face, not realising until now that he had in fact been freezing.

“Michimiya,” Iwaizumi began, looking away from the mug. “What exactly do you mean by wanting to help me save Oikawa?”

Iwaizumi watched as Michimiya took a sip from her mug, her hands shaking slightly. She looked nervous as she looked at Iwaizumi, chewing her lip slightly.

“I know…that you have an ability to travel through time.” Iwaizumi’s eyes widened at her statement, mouth agape in shock. “I’ve always thought of you as a ‘Traveller’, because you travel through time repeatedly.”

“Revival,” Iwaizumi interrupted, finding his voice. “I always called it Revival.” Iwaizumi set his mug down, afraid that he would spill the liquid from the shock of the revelation. “How on earth do you know?" 

Michimiya mimicked Iwaizumi’s motion, the mug making a slight noise as it touched the table. “You’re not the only one with an ability. I call myself an ‘Observer’. I can’t do what you do. I can’t travel through time at all. Also, I can’t say that I know the specifics of what your Revival does – I just know that you go back in time a few minutes each time.” Michimiya sighed as she tried to organise her thoughts, hands moving as she tried to explain. “The best way to put my ability would be like this – when you experience a Revival, you remember everything that happened each time you try right?”

Iwaizumi nodded slowly, wondering what Michimiya was getting at. “I remember everything too. Every time you go back, I know that time has gone backwards because I need to relieve the next few minutes all over again. Everyone around us doesn’t notice a thing, but we do.”

Michimiya looked back at Iwaizumi again, her expression slightly pained. “So it was quite a shock to suddenly find myself back in _elementary school_ , when a moment earlier I was watching television in my apartment. And right now, whilst it’s a relief to know that nothing on the surface has changed too much, I don’t know what other effects your Revival has had.”

Iwaizumi was not sure what he could say in that moment, digesting and believing everything that he had just heard. Should he apologise? Feel relieved that there was finally someone he could confide in, someone who would believe him? He thought for several seconds before replying.

“My Revival,” Iwaizumi began, staring at the coffee table. “Normally takes me back a few minutes in time in order to prevent a death. I have to try again if the victim dies, until I successfully save their life.”

“Do you know why you ended up back ten years ago? And why your Revival didn’t trigger when your student was killed? Surely you would have been able to prevent that?” Michimiya looked focused as she ran through several possibilities in her head, pointing out the irregularities she noticed from Iwaizumi’s explanation.

“No….” Iwaizumi’s voice trailed off, his expression slightly helpless. “I have no idea why I ended up back in 2004. And then managed to get back here.” He played with his mug as he continued, mug squeaking against the coffee table. “I know why Revival didn’t trigger with Takeru. I was ‘out of range’ so to speak. I ended up walking away too far from him.” Iwaizumi’s voice broke, his expression upset. “I should never have left him alone.”

Michimiya was uncertain as to what to say next, feeling it would be awkward again to try and console Iwaizumi. Iwaizumi and Michimiya sat in silence for several minutes before Michimiya spoke again, changing the topic.

“On the topic of abilities, there’s also one other person in Miyagi with a time-related ability, because I can see it too when he changes something, but I’ve never met him before.” Iwaizumi sat up suddenly, interest clearly written on his face.

“Is he like me?” Iwaizumi interrupted abruptly, heart pounding. “Do they have Revival?”

Michimiya shook her head. “Yours is reactive. Your ability only triggers in response to something else, am I right?” Iwaizumi nodded in confirmation. “That other guy, his is pre-emptive, so he can see something happening, and choose whether or not to change it. So I call him an ‘Influencer’. If he does, I can see what future he changed, just brief flashes. I also have a swarm of green butterflies suddenly appear every time one of you two do something.” She smiled weakly at Iwaizumi, taking another sip. “I know, it doesn’t really make sense.”

Iwaizumi let out a half-hearted chuckle. “I see blue butterflies right before Revival takes me back every time.”

“Ah, I see.” Michimiya looked slightly relieved, another smile appearing.

“Do you know who it is? The person who can see the future?”

“No,” Michimiya replied, looking slightly disappointed. “It’s always been hard to tell with the flashes. At best, I know it’s probably someone our age, he plays volleyball-” At Iwaizumi’s puzzled look she elaborated. “A lot of the futures that are changed are in regards to volleyball. If I had to guess, I think the uniform I kept seeing was from Shiratorizawa maybe? My volleyball team never did that well in playoffs, we were always knocked out in the first round and we didn’t stay for long.” A slight smile appeared on Michimiya’s face as she recalled several memories. “Our boys team won Nationals though.”

“I stopped following volleyball after Oikawa…died,” Iwaizumi admitted, part of him feeling slightly ashamed that he had isolated himself as he did.

“I can understand why.” Michimiya paused for several seconds, looking deep in thought before she spoke again. “I have one thing I want to confirm. Did you always have Revival, or did it only appear after a certain amount of time?”

Iwaizumi vividly recalled the first time that he had experienced Revival. First year of middle school. “First time it happened, I was twelve.”

“I knew it,” Michimiya breathed out, relief audible. “I had my suspicions.”

“About…?”

“I was born with my Observer ability, Iwaizumi,” Michimiya said, raising her right hand and holding up two fingers. “And I’ve always been aware of two others my entire life who were constantly changing the flow of time. I’m fairly certain they were born with their abilities too.”

Iwaizumi digested what Michimiya just said, the gears in his brain turning. If there had always been _two_ people throughout her entire life then-

“There was someone else before you that had your Revival ability, Iwaizumi,” Michimiya announced, confirming Iwaizumi’s line of thought. “And this I think, is key to saving Oikawa in the future.”

“It was Oikawa, wasn’t it?” Iwaizumi said, voicing the lingering suspicion in his mind. Oikawa’s frequent rate of injuries, the occasional odd behaviour, Oikawa’s reluctance to voice what he was thinking during that final fight that he had with Iwaizumi the day before he was killed the second time around. “That idiot. That stubborn idiot.”

But Iwaizumi never truly blamed Oikawa. He blamed himself. Iwaizumi wanted to cry again. He should have recognised the signs, and never pushed Oikawa that far. Iwaizumi covered his face, the sense of loss hitting him hard again. 

“It’s not your fault, Iwaizumi. It took me a long time to realise it was Oikawa, not you.” Realising that Iwaizumi was unlikely to reply again for a while, Michimiya continued. “I thought it was you, because you so obviously forgot the seating arrangements when you got back, and it made sense with the general flow of time. But you also just made it clear that you only ever managed to use Revival _after_ Oikawa died, meaning someone else was using it before then.”

“Then how did you realise it was Oikawa who had it first? And how come I ended up with Revival in the end?” Iwaizumi’s voice was still muffled, covered by his hands.

“Both times, you were the first to find Oikawa’s body. It’s possible because you were the first person that the ability passed on to you. Possibly through touch, or maybe your friendship, we may never know.” Michimiya smiled sadly, but the expression was missed by Iwaizumi who was still clutching his head in his hands.

“As for how I realised that Oikawa had Revival first…there were several Revivals that Monday afternoon after we returned to the past.” Iwaizumi sharply raised his head, trying to remember what had happened that day. But all he could recall was the incident with Oikawa running onto the road to stop the girl being run over by the car.

“The girl…and the puppy?” Iwaizumi whispered, but already knowing to be true. Michimiya nodded slightly in confirmation.

“I was walking home behind you, and I saw it all. The first time the girl was killed. Oikawa tried several times before he finally got it right.”

“I really am an idiot.” The level of frustration that Iwaizumi currently had was beyond anything that he had ever felt before. An expression that Iwaizumi was unable to recognise became visible on Michimiya’s face.

“Better an idiot than a coward!” Iwaizumi was surprised by the amount of venom that suddenly appeared in Michimiya’s voice as she practically yelled out her last statement. It was not something that he had thought possible considering her demeanour. “I made up a question during that trivia session in class to see if I could catch you out with that prime minister question.”

Iwaizumi was confused by the sudden change in the conversation, vaguely recalling said quiz, before Michimiya continued. “I was too scared to ask you outright whether you came back in time and had an ability like me. I had all the pieces of the puzzle in my hands. But I did _absolutely nothing_.”

Michimiya looked furious, hands shaking and tears coming out of the corner of her eyes as further words gushed out of her mouth. “I knew that my classmates were going to die. I’d spent enough time searching up the murders in my free time as a teenager.” Michimiya shook her head as the tears leaked out freely, running down her cheeks. “But instead, I was scared that I was wrong and you’d think weirdly of me for asking you such a question, and I just let it all happen all over again.”

“That’s enough!” Iwaizumi stood up, reaching over to Michimiya and giving her a hug as she sobbed into his chest, muttering words of self-loathing. “You’re helping me now.”

“Iwaizumi, it might not be enough.” Michimiya’s head peeked out from Iwaizumi’s embrace, her eyes red. “It’s not enough. I’m assuming that you’ll be able to go back again, even though you have no idea how you managed to back the first time!”

“That’s up to me then,” Iwaizumi said, determined, trying to make clear connections between the events that had played out. “But thinking back to both times that I jumped large amounts of time…I was really upset and stressed. When I went back to 2004, it was just after I found Takeru and I just completely lost it. And coming back here…. was just after I found Oikawa the second time. And if you hadn’t called me, I’d have probably…. probably…”

Michimiya moved her head, movement limited by Iwaizumi’s embrace, but he knew it to be a nod of agreement. She slowly pulled away from Iwaizumi, sniffing and pulling out a tissue from the nearby tissue box to clear up her face. Michimiya sat silently for several minutes, occasionally letting out the occasional hiccup before she looked ready to talk again.

“My point before I lost it a little,” Michimiya looked sheepish as she said that, giving Iwaizumi a weak smile. “is that Oikawa’s attempts to use Revival to save our classmates ended up getting him killed instead.”

“I would definitely agree with that,” Iwaizumi said quietly. He had seen Oikawa’s anguish after Matsukawa’s death and the stubborn set in his eyes to find the killer. Oikawa also had not hesitated to run after the girl that Monday, also putting himself in danger.

“The first time on Friday 10th December, 2004, there were about six or seven jumps in time. I remember vividly because I started finding it annoying that I was forced to redo the same bit of homework over and over, and it was a bit…unusual so to speak.” Michimiya looked slightly apologetic as she continued. “But the second time I lived through Friday 10th December, it was different.”

“I don’t think there was any Revivals, was there?” Iwaizumi asked, realising that his actions that afternoon had effectively put Oikawa far enough from whatever happened to Matsukawa that Revival was never triggered.

“That was you then…” Michimiya’s voice trailed off as she searched for confirmation from Iwaizumi, who nodded. “But yes, no Revivals at all. And Matsukawa died first this time.”

“So Oikawa the first time was in the wrong place at the wrong time and whilst saving Matsukawa was killed instead?” Iwaizumi voiced his current train of thoughts aloud, seeking Michimiya’s opinion.

“Believe so. But the killer must’ve been after Matsukawa specifically, because he died anyway the first time, just one week later.”

“Any thoughts on why the locations were the same? Particularly the second one?” At this, Michimiya shook her head.

“No idea. Do you have any thoughts?” 

Iwaizumi let himself gather his thoughts for several seconds before continuing. “Not on location, but if I had to guess what happened to Oikawa the second time around, I think he found something, and the killer went after him to keep him quiet.”

Michimiya looked at Iwaizumi sharply, surprise evident on her face. “What makes you say that?”

Iwaizumi took a deep breath as he easily recollected the events of the day week. “Oikawa kept disappearing after volleyball practice to do something. I confronted him on Thursday, and we got into a fight. The idiot probably thought that Revival would stop him getting seriously hurt.” Iwaizumi did not realise he was shaking until Michimiya moved towards him, rubbing his back once again. “Revival forces you to keep trying until the victim is saved, but I guess it doesn’t apply if the user dies, does it?”

Iwaizumi was now openly crying again, feeling the bitterness and anger swirling within, both aimed towards himself but also towards Revival. “That fight was the last time I saw him alive too.” Oikawa’s angry and hurt expression. The venom in his voice. They kept replaying themselves over and over again in Iwaizumi’s mind. “The first time, I said goodbye to him as he waited for his sister. Oikawa wasn’t mad at me. We didn’t have a fight. I pretty much led him to his death the second time around!”

“Stop it, Iwaizumi,” Michimiya said, firmly handing Iwaizumi a tissue. “We both have regrets. We both feel guilty. All we can do is move forward.”

Michimiya stood up, picking up the now-empty mugs on the coffee table. “I think we should call it a night. There’s a lot to think about, and we’ve both kind of let it all out emotionally.”

Iwaizumi stood up in protest. “I can keep going. I’ve failed Oikawa twice. I won’t fail him a third time.”

“No,” Michimiya said with a sense of finality. “You need to rest. You’re worn out, mentally and physically, I don’t know exactly how you feel, but you really need to rest. I’ll take tomorrow off work.”

“Fine.” Iwaizumi recognised stubbornness when he saw it, and knew that once someone reached that stage of determination that they were not going to budge at all. 

The relief was clear on Michimiya’s face as he agreed. Iwaizumi sank back into the couch, the sudden silence making the weight of the discussion that they had just had all the heavier. He closed his eyes, hoping to let himself slowly unwind. Iwaizumi had been napping for about ten minutes before he felt himself being roughly shaken awake by Michimiya, who once again looked frantic.

“Iwaizumi,” she said frantically, phone in her hand. “I don’t think it’s safe for you to stay in Tokyo right now.”

“What?” Iwaizumi blinked several times, trying to adjust to the sudden brightness as he attempted to shake off the exhaustion he was feeling.

“It popped up when I was scrolling through my phone.” Michimiya handed her phone over to Iwaizumi, who took a brief look at the article that was opened. Iwaizumi’s face visibly paled as he scrolled through to the end.

“I didn’t realise that Takeru’s dad was a big shot in the police.” Iwaizumi felt a slightly hysterical chuckle come out as his situation worsened once again, the article making it clear that Iwaizumi was practically a dead man walking. “I never seem to be able to catch a break.”

“I can’t let them get to you,” Michimiya said desperately, running towards the kitchen and returning several seconds later with her coat and keys. “You haven’t had time to find out everything about the murders yet.” 

“Maybe that’s just fate telling me that it’s over,” Iwaizumi said with resignation.

“No!” Both of them looked surprised at Michimiya’s sudden outburst as she helped Iwaizumi pull himself up from the couch. “I believe we can fix this. We _will_ fix this together.”

“Where are we going to go then?” Iwaizumi slid on the face mask that he had used earlier, also surrounding himself with the warmth of Michimiya’s scarf.

“The reports said you left your car behind and that you are on foot, so the police wouldn’t expect you to get far. I’ll drive you to Sendai.”

“Michimiya, that’s too far,” Iwaizumi protested, wanting to stop in his tracks but Michimiya forcibly pulled him behind her as they semi-jogged through the corridors of her apartment building.

“This started in Sendai, and it will end in Sendai. It’ll be the last place they’ll check for you! I can do the drive in four hours if I speed.”

Iwaizumi found himself unable to protest any further as he slid back into Michimiya’s car, engine starting before he had even managed to shut the door. Iwaizumi closed his eyes in resignation, attempting to nap, but looping images of Oikawa and blue butterflies swirled throughout his mind as they drove.

* * *

It was still dark when Iwaizumi finally opened his eyes, car still in motion. A brief look outside revealed an empty highway surrounded by trees, and in the distance Iwaizumi could see the outlines of familiar buildings that he had not seen in years.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” Michimiya said, noticing Iwaizumi shuffling in his seat as he tried to shake off the groggy feeling from his poor quality nap.

Iwaizumi grunted in confirmation as they continued driving. He was content to watch the scenery of Sendai get closer and closer, before an unanticipated urge struck his mind. 

“Michimiya,” Iwaizumi began, voice sounding hoarse from its lack of use. “Do you mind if we stop over somewhere first?”

Michimiya’s eyes briefly flicked over to Iwaizumi’s in curiosity before returning to the road. “It depends on where. Is it safe?”

“Should be.” Iwaizumi was silent for several seconds, thinking of the best way he could voice his request, before deciding to say it outright. “I want to visit Oikawa’s grave.”

Michimiya’s face morphed into an expression of concern as she slowed the car down, driving closer to the speed limit that they had been exceeding. “You sure you want to do that? Why?”

“I never visited once,” Iwaizumi admitted. “I never got over his death and part of me felt that if I never saw his grave, I could almost pretend that he truly wasn’t dead. Now I feel I need to accept this properly before I can move on.” 

“I can’t say that I completely understand,” Michimiya said, after several seconds of silence. “But I agree that you should go once. I know where he is, he’s close to my grandparents.” 

“Thank you.” Iwaizumi did not feel that anything else needed to be said as Michimiya turned off the empty highway, moving into a narrower street surrounded by additional trees.

It was still mostly dark when Michimiya finally parked the car, however a slight glow from the approaching sunrise could be faintly seen on the horizon. Michimiya stifled a yawn as she led Iwaizumi through the cemetery with the assistance of her phone flashlight, turning through what felt like a twisting maze of family graves. They finally stopped at a marble monument decorated with vases of flowers, as well as the kanji for ‘Oikawa’ written in large calligraphic font.

“I kind of wish that we had something to leave behind as an offering,” Michimiya said, feeling the need to whisper as she bowed respectfully in front of the grave. Iwaizumi was silent as he closed his eyes, bowing and remembering the more positive memories that he shared with Oikawa. He allowed himself to get lost in the positive memories before slowly opening his eyes again, the faint rays from the sunrise starting to get brighter along the horizon.

The sudden crunch of a heavy weight stepping on stone caused both Michimiya and Iwaizumi to turn around with panic, spotting a tall, thin shadow approaching them. 

“Iwaizumi, we better get out of here,” Michimiya whispered with worry, grabbing Iwaizumi’s arm. Iwaizumi found himself shaking his head, moving towards the approaching figure. He felt extremely uneasy as they approached, but also had the unconscious urge to go closer, feeling that there was something familiar about the shadowy figure.

“Iwaizumi!”

“Hajime-kun…. it’s…. been a…. while.” The voice was feminine and broke in unusual places. Iwaizumi and Michimiya stood frozen as the features of the shadowy figure became clearer, with long, tangled chocolate brown hair framing a gaunt, pale face. Iwaizumi could not control the sudden gasp that he released as he recognised the figure that stopped in front of them.

“Iwaizumi, who is that?” Michimiya was clinging to Iwaizumi’s arm to an extent, fear evident on her face as it became clear that they would not be able to leave without a confrontation.

“Oikawa-san…” Iwaizumi breathed out, eyes wide as he fully took in the state of the figure in front of him.

Iwaizumi was not sure how to classify the smile that suddenly appeared on Oikawa Aimi’s face as she heard her name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There’s a lot more dialogue in this chapter than I really wanted to have (hopefully it’s not too dry), however I felt it was also important to explain things clearly (and cover possible plot gaps), as this is a very important learning chapter for Iwa-chan! Uni has also started for me this semester, so if I don’t update for a while, please blame my honours thesis :(


	7. (2014) Patterns

Iwaizumi’s breathing was far too harsh as Aimi continued to step closer, her serene expression in stark contrast to how unhealthy and frail she looked. She stopped a mere metre away from where Iwaizumi and Michimiya stood, frozen, tilting her head to one side.

“Hajime-kun, I’m delighted to see you again!” Her tone was light and airy, brown eyes excited, but Iwaizumi felt something off in her voice as he tried to smile in response. Different again. Aimi did not acknowledge Michimiya as she looked beyond Iwaizumi, eyes settling on the Oikawa family grave as she continued moving forward. Like a switch, her expression suddenly turned from joy to manic and furious.

“That…. _bastard_ ,” she hissed, her sudden tone change startling Iwaizumi as she powered forward towards the grave, pushing past Iwaizumi and Michimiya, and roughly grabbed at something.

A ceramic vase was smashed against a marble gravestone, soil and wilting flowers scattering, the sound racing through the heavy air like a gunshot. Aimi proceeded to crush the flowers beneath her feet, every step accompanied by frenzied muttering under her breath.

“That bastard dares to put them here again, I’ve got your message, I’ve got your message…. I’ll hunt you down…. down…”

If Iwaizumi had not already suspected that something had drastically changed within Aimi, he would now. What on earth had happened to her? The Aimi here could barely be recognised as the same person he last saw ten years ago.

“Oikawa-san,” Michimiya asked, voice an octave higher than normal from a combination of nerves and fear. “Who are you talking about?”

Aimi stopped her rampage, looking as if she finally noticed Michimiya for the first time as their eyes met.

“A good question…very good question.” Aimi’s expression morphed into a sardonic smile as she looked at Iwaizumi and Michimiya. “How familiar are you with the flower language? Hanakotoba?”

Iwaizumi opened his mouth to reply, but Aimi continued speaking, clearly never intending to let Iwaizumi or Michimiya explain.

“These filthy flowers have a very specific meaning.” Aimi enunciated each word clearly as she bent down, picking up one of the crushed flowers in her hands and twirling it around. “White chrysanthemums. They represent the truth.” She then discarded the flower carelessly, this time picking up a different, larger flower from the crushed flowers by her feet. “And the sweet pea. Representing goodbye. A very clear message. And the _timing_.”

Aimi was no longer smiling as she glared at the remnants of the flowers beneath her feet like they had personally insulted her. “They’re always fresh after I visit on the 17th December. Every year without fail. They’re here on other times of the year too, but they’re more random. But the 17th. Is _always the same_.” The manic look that she had shown earlier had returned to her eyes.

“What do they mean to you?” Iwaizumi was grateful that Michimiya was still able to speak, as he had long since felt he had lost the ability to talk as the scene in front of him played out. As he started realising why Aimi was acting this way.

“Tooru was always smart. Hajime-kun would know.” Aimi looked at Iwaizumi, Iwaizumi feeling obliged to nod in response. “Tooru was too smart and found out the truth about the killer. And that bastard killed him. He doesn’t leave flowers at the graves of the others. Only Tooru’s, because Tooru died trying to get the truth out!” Aimi kicked at the ground viciously.

“But the killer was arrested! The killings stopped after they were arrested!” Michimiya protested, confusion clear on her face. “I read the papers, they found all the evidence they needed-”

“Who?” Iwaizumi interrupted, sounding harsher than he intended, looking rapidly between Michimiya and Aimi. “Who was arrested?”

“You don’t remember? I’m not surprised, you’re just like me, broken by losing Tooru…” Iwaizumi was not sure if it was pity or sadness that crossed Aimi’s face then as she let out a soft sigh, gentler than any sound that Iwaizumi had heard from her today. “Irihata. Your old volleyball coach, was arrested for the murders.”

“No way.” Iwaizumi took a step back in shock. Irihata? “I-I can’t believe that he would-”

“It’s not him. Irihata was definitely framed,” Aimi said confidently, no doubt in her voice as she kicked at the ground again, this time with less force.

“How can you be so certain?”

Aimi let out a hysterical laugh, the madness apparent as she bent over, laughing at Michimiya’s question.

“You think that I wouldn’t dig deeper into who murdered my little brother?” Michimiya’s breaths were clearly audible as she backed away from Aimi in fear, who proceeded to step in closer. “Irihata was just a convenient scapegoat, because all three victims played volleyball. And Irihata was single. No alibi. He was torn apart at the trial.”

Iwaizumi felt his heart sink as his hearing selectively picked up on several phrases. Convenient scapegoat. Three victims. No wonder he had failed to save Oikawa. Iwaizumi had missed the larger picture the entire time. It should never have all been about Oikawa in the first place. Iwaizumi met Michimiya’s eyes, hoping that she would understand the unspoken thought in his mind. _Who else died?_

“Nakamura was murdered on New Year’s Eve,” Michimiya answered, eyes watering slightly, looking away from Iwaizumi once she went silent.

“Yes, that one was…tragic, wasn’t it?” Aimi looked over at the horizon, where the sunrise was now clearly visible over the horizon. She was deep in thought for several seconds before a warmer smile appeared on her face.

“Why don’t you come over to my place? I’ll show you _everything_ that I have on that bastard.”

It was probably not a good point in time for Iwaizumi to suddenly recollect that Aimi was in fact Takeru’s mother, the same Takeru whose death had sent him in a mad dash to Miyagi to escape. His heart rate picked up, stomach clenching from nerves as he feared what the unhinged Aimi could do to him if she knew the truth. He had already seen how she reacted to the mere mention of Oikawa’s killer.

The panic must have shown on Iwaizumi’s face, as Aimi let out a sound of understanding, her smile not fading. “Hajime-kun, you are truly cursed by that bastard.” Aimi closed her eyes, thinking. “I know very well that Takeru was also taken from me last night.” Was this it, Iwaizumi thought, was this where it was all going to end? Aimi knew. She knew Takeru was dead. She definitely knew who was on the run as a suspect in his murder.

Iwaizumi closed his eyes, feeling the fight leave his body, however he was not expecting the warmth that he suddenly felt as Aimi leant against his chest. Iwaizumi opened his eyes, looking down at Aimi. He was a good head taller than her in this state, and it was weirdly disorienting.

“Yamada is out for your blood, but I _know_ you, and I know you would never hurt him.” Aimi was quiet for several seconds, seeming calm as she leant against Iwaizumi, before suddenly jumping back, face suddenly filled with rage again. “It was that bastard again. How _much_ does he need to take from me? How much?”

Iwaizumi and Michimiya were unable to do much but watch as Aimi let out her anger on her surroundings, pacing between gravestones furiously and further crushing the flowers that she had previously attacked. The anger seemed to drain out of Aimi several minutes later when she seemed to register that Iwaizumi and Michimiya were waiting for her, her face now exhausted.

“Come over to my place. I will show you everything.” It was a demand, not a request.

Michimiya looked startled as she hurried to respond. “We drove up from Tokyo last night just to get Iwaizumi away from the police search…are you sure?”

Aimi let out another laugh. “My place is empty, and everyone stays away from the ‘crazy lady’.” Aimi drew imaginary quotation marks in the air as she spoke. “I won’t let anyone hurt Hajime-kun…he’s my little brother’s beloved Iwa-chan. I won’t let them near him.”

Michimiya let out a small nod of defeat. “You can lead the way, and I’ll follow in my car.”

“Do you have room for one more in the car? I walked here.” Aimi looked sheepish, the expression contrasting with the shock on Michimiya’s face.

“Su-sure.”

The walk back to Michimiya’s car was mostly silent, the look of anticipation on Aimi’s face unnerving Iwaizumi. He could also feel Michimiya was on edge from a combination of exhaustion and fear from the unexpected encounter with Aimi.

“Do you still live in the same place?” Iwaizumi asked Aimi as they got into the car, Aimi giving Michimiya’s car an appreciative look. 

“Yes. So you can lead the way, Hajime-kun.” 

The sun had fully risen by the time Michimiya parked the car into the Oikawa’s garage, Iwaizumi grateful that they could enter the house from within the garage. His parents had never moved houses, meaning that Iwaizumi was starkly aware of the fact that he was barely metres from his own childhood home. Having to sneak into Oikawa’s house from the outside whilst carefully avoiding the attention of his own parents would have been more than Iwaizumi could fully cope with right now. The garage entrance at least, was a small mercy.

The interior of the Oikawa’s house brought Iwaizumi’s childhood memories to the forefront of his mind. He could hear the echoes of Oikawa’s voice in the house, from snuggling together watching movies, to carefully building Lego houses in the middle of the living room. In terms of appearance, the house had barely changed in the last ten years, but to Iwaizumi there was something drastically missing. The house was cold, a shell of its former self in comparison to the memories that Iwaizumi was currently reliving.

“Tooru’s room is just as he left it.” Aimi had noticed Iwaizumi’s inspection of the house. The nostalgia he was feeling was intensifying his sense of loss, however he also found that he was still able to feel joy from reliving his childhood memories of Oikawa. Iwaizumi resolved to learn as much about the past as he could now, welcoming the determination that he suddenly felt. Whilst there was no guarantee that Revival would take him back to the past again, the hope that it could do so was the only thing fuelling him right now.

“Why did you finally visit Tooru’s grave after all these years?” Iwaizumi was startled out of his thoughts by the question, not having seen it coming. Beside him, Michimiya moved towards the nearby couch and practically collapsed on it, her exhaustion from driving all night without a break finally catching up to her. 

“It was something I felt I needed to do.” Iwaizumi sat down on a nearby chair, also feeling the exhaustion from the events of the previous day creeping throughout his body. “I wanted to get the resolve to learn everything about Oikawa’s murder now, because I ran away from it when I was younger.” Iwaizumi looked towards Michimiya, who was now clearly asleep on the couch. “Michimiya was also in my class that year, and she’s been helping me out. If she didn’t help me, I’d be in a jail cell right now.”

Aimi looked at Michimiya with a soft and grateful look, her expression the closest to what Iwaizumi recalled in his memories of her since they met in the cemetery.

“If you need to sleep too, Tooru’s room is free. I remember you staying over there so often that it was pretty much your second bedroom!”

Iwaizumi chuckled, feeling a smile creep onto his face as he pushed himself out of the chair, feeling completely and utterly dead on his feet. He was completely spent, mentally and physically after, everything that had just happened. Iwaizumi slowly climbed up the stairs to the top floor of Oikawa’s house, his feet instinctively following the path that it had followed many times before to the room at the end of the corridor.

He could almost hear the faint echoes of _“Hurry up, Iwa-chan!”_ as he moved closer towards Oikawa’s room. 

Iwaizumi stopped at the room at the end of the corridor, the familiar room looking nearly untouched over the last decade. Iwaizumi could not help but let out a smile at the faded posters hung up around the room, from the Japanese National Volleyball Team, to Star Wars. Then there were the toys that Oikawa always claimed that he did not need, yet Iwaizumi would always find in Oikawa’s death grip the next morning.

Iwaizumi slid back the blankets on Oikawa’s bed, absolutely loving the feel of the soft mattress on his aching back, and not caring that the bed was far too small for him. He immediately fell asleep the moment that he buried himself under the blankets of Oikawa’s bed, succumbing to his exhaustion.

* * *

 

Iwaizumi awoke to the smell of food, the aroma reminding him that he had not eaten since that fateful McDonalds run with Takeru. He groaned, rolling underneath the sheets, feeling significantly more refreshed. Judging by the darkness outside, it was at least six or seven in the evening. After several minutes staring at the ceiling, Iwaizumi finally slid out of bed, stretching as he headed downstairs to relieve his muscles.

He spotted Michimiya and Aimi together at the dining table, eating whilst engaging in light conversation that looked cordial. However, judging by Michimiya’s relieved expression as Iwaizumi approached, there had definitely been more to the conversation than met the eye.

“Hajime-kun, did you sleep well?” Aimi asked, offering him a bowl of rice which Iwaizumi accepted gratefully. “I was just getting to know Michimiya here a little better.”

Iwaizumi looked again towards Michimiya, who seemed intently focused on eating that particular mouthful of rice.

“Once you’ve finished, I really want to show you _everything_ that I have found,” Aimi said excitedly. “I’ve been digging into this case for so many years, so it’s a relief that someone will hear me out.” Aimi’s eyes darkened as she stabbed her chopsticks into the rice.

Iwaizumi could only call the rest of the meal awkward at they ate in mostly silence, with the only noises heard the clinking of chopsticks against ceramic. After clearing away the empty bowls from dinner, they followed Aimi up the stairs, both of them clearly feeling Aimi’s excitement. Partway up, Michimiya pulled Iwaizumi behind, reaching up to whisper in Iwaizumi’s ear.

“I didn’t tell her anything about your Revival,” Michimiya said, looking anxiously up at Aimi to make sure that she did not notice their conversation. “I didn’t think it would be good to add more fuel to the fire.”

“Thanks,” Iwaizumi replied, feeling slightly relieved and in complete agreement with Michimiya. There was no predicting how Aimi would react if she learnt that Oikawa had possessed Revival.

They suddenly stopped at the stop of the stairs, Aimi standing outside of a closed door and waiting for Iwaizumi and Michimiya to reach her. Iwaizumi frowned slightly, trying to recall having entered that particular room but coming up blank. It had not been a room that Oikawa had deemed necessary to shove Iwaizumi into.

“I keep everything here,” Aimi announced once Iwaizumi and Michimiya had reached the top of the stairs. “Everything. From the moment that Irihata was arrested, I knew I couldn’t let this slide seeing as an innocent man was being sent to jail, and my little brother was killed.” Aimi’s hand shook in fury as she grasped the door handle. “My parents kept trying to get me to stop. Because I had Takeru. But I could not forget Tooru like that.”

Aimi opened the door and flicked on the light switch, revealing the contents of the room and causing both Iwaizumi and Michimiya to gasp in shock.

The room resembled one of the scenes that Iwaizumi had seen in the few crime shows that he had indulged himself in – the walls were covered in articles, some from newspapers, other printed directly from online. Many of them were highlighted in various shades of florescent yellow, pink and green, and pins had been dug into the wall, connecting strings between them. The desk in the middle was covered in loose, possibly unsorted sheets of paper, with a closed laptop resting in the middle as a final touch.

“This is over ten years’ worth,” Aimi said, proud smile on her face, beckoning the pair inside.

“My goodness,” Michimiya whispered, head turning as she tried to fully grasp the contents of the room. “This is insane.”

“Over here,” Aimi snapped, looking impatient. Iwaizumi and Michimiya hurriedly moved over, not wanting to upset Aimi any further. Iwaizumi examined the wall that they were looking at, startled to see his picture and Takeru’s on the wall, string connecting the two photos together. Iwaizumi looked further to the right, and let out an involuntary gasp of shock as he recognised the child in the other photo that was pinned up.

“I had a feeling you would recognise the poor kid in this photo.” Aimi tapped the photo that Iwaizumi was currently focused on. “Who was he?”

“Kuroo Satoshi,” Iwaizumi replied, unable to look away from the picture. His heart sank as he thought about what had likely happened to him. “He’s the younger brother of a classmate. I helped him out with maths a few times as a favour to his brother.”

“The link this time is tutoring, huh?” Aimi muttered, more to herself, pulling out sticky notes from her pocket and writing ‘Tutoring’ in bold letters with permanent marker. “Satoshi-kun was found drowned in the Arakawa River this time last week. Didn’t make the big news, but drowning and strangulation is always the key indicator.” Aimi stuck the sticky note carefully between the pictures of Satoshi and Takeru.

“Key indicator of what?” Michimiya interrupted, slightly fearful of the response that she was going to get. 

“That bastard is a serial killer. After doing what he did in Miyagi, he disappeared and reappeared elsewhere to repeat the same cycle of killing.” Aimi motioned to the room around her dramatically. “It’s always young children that die. And it’s always either strangulation or drowning.” Aimi then turned to look at Iwaizumi, slamming her hand against the wall he was looking at as she paused dramatically.

“And he’s now here in Tokyo.”

“Are you saying that you think that the same person who killed Oikawa killed Takeru?” Michimiya asked in astonishment, her expression mirrored in Iwaizumi’s face. “Isn’t that a massive leap to make?”

“I’ve been hunting this bastard down for ten years, I’d like to think I know who I’m looking for.” Michimiya was startled into silence by Aimi’s violent response. Iwaizumi thought back to something that Aimi had said to him earlier. _Hajime-kun, you are truly cursed by that bastard_. He did not want to believe that the same killer had played him for a fool, twice.

“See here-” Aimi slammed her hand against the wall again, this time at a different set of articles. “After you get a few deaths by strangling or drowning, there’s always someone arrested for it. But every single time, the accused always, always so vehemently denied it, I thought it was weird…”

Aimi pointed to a nearby map of Japan, littered with red ‘x’s, Iwaizumi particularly noting the mark on Sendai. “It was hard to track, considering that it was spread out over the place, but it’s the same bastard. It’s definitely him.” Aimi looked at Iwaizumi with pity and sorrow. “And this time, he chose _you_ , Hajime-kun, as his scapegoat, because you’re probably the only person who knows both the victims.”

“My students?” Iwaizumi’s mouth throat was extremely dry by this stage. He really was not sure whether or not to believe Aimi at this stage, it all seemed so ridiculous, but at the same time he wanted it to be true. It would give him someone to blame, someone to _hunt_ for vengeance. At that very moment, Iwaizumi could understand where Aimi was coming from.

“Exactly. He learns everything about the person he wants to frame, then chooses the victims carefully.”

“That would mean that he would know _exactly_ where I was driving…. Takeru was killed after I left my car to check on a rabbit I ran over!”

“Hajime, Hajime,” Aimi chided, Iwaizumi feeling like he had been reprimanded by his parents. “That bastard has gotten bold over the years with how he has approached his victims. _Nothing_ can stop him.”

Aimi turned to Michimiya with a smile, clearly now lost in her own world. “You did a smart thing, bringing Hajime-kun to Sendai and away from Tokyo. It’s much harder for that bastard to pin a third murder on Hajime-kun now.”

It was at this stage that Iwaizumi fully, truly understood exactly how much Oikawa’s death had taken its toll on Aimi. She had been isolated, lost in her grief, left with an unfulfilled need for vengeance, and it had eaten away at her from the inside. The impact of Oikawa’s death had truly snowballed through so many different people. Iwaizumi felt the guilt well up within him for being unable to stop this vicious chain of pain with his Revival.

“Aimi,” Iwaizumi said gently, hoping that Aimi would be receptive if he did not push her too far. “Would we be able to take a look at all this on our own? And do some additional research?”

Aimi looked at Iwaizumi for several seconds, considering his request before replying. “Sure.” She moved to the door with another smile, turning around to give them one last message. “If you need any help, I’ll be downstairs.” 

Michimiya waited for the sound of Aimi’s footsteps to fully disappear before letting out a sigh of relief, relaxing her tense posture. “I have no idea how to act around her.” 

“I know.” Iwaizumi rubbed his temples, feeling the onset of a headache coming up. “Aimi loved Tooru so much, and she was a brilliant sister. Cheerful, and cheeky.” Iwaizumi could easily recollect memories of Aimi’s merciless teasing of Oikawa. “She’s just as much a victim of all this as Oikawa. I want to help her.” Iwaizumi could feel the frustration creep into his tone.

“I understand.” Michimiya moved towards the wall, examining some of the articles that Aimi had annotated. They were silent for several minutes as Iwaizumi thought about the best way that he could learn information about the case. About the facts that were essential to know and would prove crucial in making sure that things did not play out as they did the first and second time around.

“Michimiya,” Iwaizumi finally asked, “Apart from Oikawa’s and Matsukawa’s deaths being swapped around, were there any other differences in the killings after my Revival?" 

“I’ll have to search it up online,” Michimiya replied, moving towards Aimi’s laptop on the desk. “But Aimi did not correct me when I said Nakamura was killed on New Year’s Eve.” Michimiya quickly ran a search on the laptop before adding to her original statement.

“Nakamura’s is all the same. He died on the same date, he was killed the same way, and found in the same location.” 

“Hmm.” Iwaizumi was not sure how important that bit of information would be, however he filed it away for reference as he recalled another event that he could not make sense of. “Do you have any thoughts on why the locations where the bodies were found were the same both times, even though the order of the victims swapped?” 

“No.” Michimiya took a quick glance at the room around her. “It doesn’t look like that the locations themselves were important, but the killer had clearly planned to dump the bodies there in advance.” Then in a quieter tone, she asked “Do you think Irihata did it? Do you believe what Aimi says?”

What _did_ Iwaizumi think? He had been inundated with far too much information over the last twenty-four hours, and barely had time to think and stew over it. But Iwaizumi struggled to visualise his old volleyball coach hurting, let alone killing someone, let alone someone from his beloved volleyball team.

“I don’t think it was him,” Iwaizumi finally said. “As for Aimi, she’s smart and she’s done the research. I won’t ignore what she says, because just taking a look at everything here you can tell that there is something up.”

“There are key patterns,” Michimiya added, typing in several key words and scrolling through her search results. “Hmm, that's interesting. In each different spree, the killings were always on the same day of the week.”

“What do you mean?”

“The first spree, the three murders were all on a Monday. In our case, all of the murders were on a Friday.” Michimiya clicked through several of her open browser tabs, each showing the date of deaths of each victim.

“That’s useful to know.” Michimiya let out a hum of agreement, closing several of her open tabs. 

“Do you happen to remember if there were any other suspects to the case apart from Irihata?” It was a long-shot question, but Iwaizumi knew that even one name was better than none in this case.

Michimiya opened her mouth to reply, but a sudden crashing sound downstairs cut her short.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing? Get out!” They could hear Aimi downstairs screeching and screaming, and Iwaizumi could see his surprise reflected in Michimiya’s eyes.

“Check upstairs,” another voice, this one male commanded, and Iwaizumi felt the blood drain out of his face as he realised what was going on. Iwaizumi could tell that Michimiya too had realised, her face suddenly panicked, as the thundering sounds of multiple people running upstairs could be heard.

“Iwaizumi,” Michimiya cried out, her eyes darting around the room for anywhere that they could hide. Iwaizumi barely had enough time to take a step towards her before the entrance to the room was completely blocked, police officers swarming into the room.

Iwaizumi found himself suddenly judo-thrown to the floor, his arm painfully twisted against his back. He gritted his teeth as he felt the sudden onset of pain at his shoulder, feeling as if it would be suddenly dislocated. From the edges of his peripheral vision, he could tell that Michimiya had also been grabbed by her gasp of surprise, the metallic sounds of handcuffs audible.

Iwaizumi had to resist the urge to let out a sound of pain as his arm was further bent, feeling the weight on his back shift as the person on him bent over. There was no way that police were normally that aggressive to someone that was unarmed.

“I’ve finally got you,” the person on his back hissed, Iwaizumi feeling the sudden onset of fear when he recognised the voice. Yamada. Takeru’s dad. Of course he would lead the team that were hunting Iwaizumi. Iwaizumi felt tears start to pool at the edges of his eyes as the pain around his shoulder got worse, before feeling something suddenly come loose. It was definitely dislocated now. 

“Get off him,” Michimiya screeched, attempting to get loose. “He’s done nothing wrong!” 

Michimiya’s voice sounded as if it were coming from far away, even though that Iwaizumi logically knew that she was mere metres from him. But it was so difficult to think, the pain from his shoulder interfering with his usual thought processes. No. It was his fault that Michimiya was in this mess. She shouldn’t be defending him. That was his job, but he was lying uselessly on the floor, unable to act.

“Iwaizumi!” Michimiya sobbed as she was forcibly dragged out of the room. “Iwaizumi!”

Michimiya’s cry temporarily broke through the haze of Iwaizumi’s mind, desperation filling him. There was only one thing left to try. He had to go back to 2004. They were both at a dead end right now. He had gotten Michimiya into this mess, and he had to get her out of it.

Michimiya. Takeru. Oikawa. Their faces appeared in Iwaizumi’s mind as desperation like he had never felt before filled him. Aimi. Irihata. Their lives irreparably ruined by the actions of one person.

Iwaizumi let himself get roughly hoisted off the ground, hands cuffed behind his back. He let himself get thrown around like a rag doll. This didn’t matter. This pain didn’t matter. Revival. Please. The tears were coming out thicker now, dripping down Iwaizumi’s face. Just one more chance. He could save Oikawa. He had to. There was so much at stake. 

“TOORU!” Iwaizumi found himself screaming, the image of a laughing, carefree Oikawa appearing in his mind, and Iwaizumi felt himself reaching out for it, he just wanted to mess around and watch alien movies with him again and play volleyball-

Crackling.

Blue butterflies.

Iwaizumi felt so numb, but yet so full of emotion. Everything felt like it was burning, but at the same time it wasn’t. Iwaizumi lost the ability to move his legs, and he was falling, falling- 

Iwaizumi let out a wild gasp as he abruptly sat up, finding himself in a bed, his arms free, shoulder blissfully free of pain. Iwaizumi looked around the room in a panic, confirming that it was his childhood bedroom. He looked straight towards his digital clock, ignoring the bright numbers indicating that it was three in the morning, and instead focusing directly on the date.

Thursday, 9th December.

Iwaizumi collapsed onto his back, the relief coursing through his veins. Somehow, he had actually forced the Revival to happen. Iwaizumi almost wanted to cry from relief. It seemed like complete emotional distress was one of the triggers for the massive Revival leaps.

His mobile phone went off next to his clock, Iwaizumi grabbing at it without thinking. He had a new message from an unknown number, but he instinctively knew it would be Michimiya.

**_Unknown number [03:45]_ **

_You did it. M_

_No_ , Iwaizumi thought, putting the phone back on the bedside table. _The true battle is about to begin._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rewrote this a few times because I was not too happy with it, it’s better now but still not what I really wanted. But felt it was better to get this out, as I’m hyped about writing the next chapter (I miss writing Oikawa!) May the honours thesis be kind to me this week XD


	8. (2004) Secrets

“Iwa-chan!”

What had once been an irritating nickname that Iwaizumi had desperately fought to eradicate when he was five years old and had just met that annoyingly clingy boy next door had turned into a term of endearment. It was comforting, but most of all to Iwaizumi, it meant _Oikawa_.

The very same Oikawa that was currently waiting impatiently for Iwaizumi to put his shoes on so they could walk to school together.

Even though Iwaizumi knew without a doubt that he was back in 2004, Oikawa’s very presence was reassuring and calmed him down. And Iwaizumi was going to bloody make sure that no one again dared harm Oikawa.

Along with Michimiya, he was going to stop that serial killer from killing anyone else.

Despite his urge, the walk to school with Oikawa was strangely difficult. There was the suppressed urge to simply hug him tightly and not let go, such was the relief that Iwaizumi felt at seeing him again. And possibly worse was having to act like a ten year old again, and act like there was nothing bothering him, when his mind was consumed with the thoughts of murders and serial killers. With his experiences across multiple Revivals, Iwaizumi felt more like he was sixty. 

Unexpectedly, the elementary school classroom, with its over-excitable occupants, ended up as a source of relief for Iwaizumi, especially after he spotted Michimiya already at her desk.

“Sleeping better, Iwaizumi-kun?” Saito asked Iwaizumi as he walked past the teacher’s desk. Iwaizumi nodded abruptly in response, wondering for a second whether Saito was wanting to have further discussion with him, before moving towards his desk once it was clear that Saito had no need to chat with him.

Iwaizumi made eye contact with Michimiya as he approached his desk, a slight shake of her head drawing his attention to the piece of paper lying there.

“It’s good to see you,” Michimiya whispered from behind as Iwaizumi dropped his bag, dumping his stationery hastily on his desk so he could read the note Michimiya had left behind in relative secrecy.

Iwaizumi opened his notebook, sliding the sheet of paper inside as he read Michimiya’s message.

 _What are you planning to do?_

Iwaizumi resisted the urge to turn back and look at Michimiya as Saito called for attention, the babble of the classroom around him quieting down. He waited until Saito was sufficiently engaged in the roll before grabbing his pencil, scribbling a response.

_Matsukawa is the key. We need to get him out of harm’s way if we don’t want anything happening._

Saito was still marking the roll. That was good. Iwaizumi scrunched up the paper he had written on, and carefully dropped it on Michimiya’s desk without turning back, feeling like a criminal performing his dodgy deals in a bright alleyway. He briefly scanned the room, convinced no one had seen. Normally it would be Oikawa who enjoyed passing notes around, and Iwaizumi scalding him. At the very least, watching Oikawa at work had come in handy.

It was several minutes before he felt something light tumble down his chest, the piece of paper now sitting in his lap. Iwaizumi carefully opened it up, reading the message in front of him. 

_Assuming this is based off your second Friday? Chat more at recess, believe this will get long._

Iwaizumi leaned back in his chair, nodding his head slightly to acknowledge that he understood Michimiya’s message. He spent the rest of the class writing down as much as he could remember on what he had learnt about the case, eagerly waiting for the recess bell to ring. When it finally did, Iwaizumi wasted no time in turning his chair around to face Michimiya, placing his newly written notes on her desk.

“Iwa-chan, I didn’t know you had the ability to speak to girls.” Iwaizumi looked sideways, spotting Oikawa and his usual milk bread, voice seemingly astonished but the knowing glint in Oikawa’s eyes suggesting otherwise. Oikawa stared firstly at Iwaizumi, then at Michimiya, and back to Iwaizumi, smile getting wider.

“My ability to talk to girls is perfectly fine, Shittykawa.” He had nearly forgotten about Oikawa’s favourite hobby, namely trying to burst all his blood vessels in anger. 

“Iwa-chan, is Yui-chan _special_? Is there something about her that makes shy Iwa-chan come out of his turtle shell?” Oikawa teased, winking at Michimiya who looked away awkwardly.

“Oikawa, go away,” Iwaizumi grumbled, not particularly feeling up to the task of saying something more eloquent. It got the message across to Oikawa at least, loud and clear. 

“Fine fine, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa said airily, amusement clearly dancing in his eyes. “But if you need advice, I won’t give it to you~” Oikawa turned away with a deliberate swirl, as if to emphasise the fact that he _knew_ that he was probably the crush of the majority of the girls in the class and thus ‘had experience’. Iwaizumi questioned why he was friends with the guy. 

“He’s such a character,” Michimiya commented, the look in her eyes far more knowledgeable than it should be for the ten year old she was meant to be acting as.

“Can we get started?” Iwaizumi sighed, keeping track of Oikawa out of the corner of his eye to make sure he did not interfere with their discussion.

“Sure. You start?”

Iwaizumi gave himself a few seconds to organise his thoughts before starting.

“Firstly, I want to make it clear that I do _not_ want Oikawa involved in any of this.” Iwaizumi crossed his arms, staring straight into Michimiya’s eyes as she opened her mouth to protest.

“Are you serious?” she spluttered in response, forgetting to keep her voice low. “You do realise that Oikawa will be involved in this no matter what we do?”

“Michimiya, last time Oikawa went on his own heroic mission I found him dead in a park,” Iwaizumi hissed, leaning forward and waving at Michimiya to lower her voice. His voice softened considerably as he continued. “I’m just scared how far Oikawa would go to save someone. He cares. I don’t want him to get involved.”

“Revival gives us an advantage though,” Michimiya said quietly, maintaining eye contact with Iwaizumi and highlighting her resistance to Iwaizumi’s demand.

“I know.” Iwaizumi looked again towards Oikawa, taking in the sound of his voice as he chatted to his classmates, and just how protected he was from the horrors that Iwaizumi had seen. There was an innocence to him that would be forever lost to Iwaizumi, and one that Iwaizumi wanted to protect in Oikawa. “But consider that we’re both twenty…we have double the life experience that Oikawa does. And I just want him safe.” Iwaizumi hoped that Michimiya could see his desperation, understand his plea. “I can’t put him in danger like that. I can’t do it.”

“I understand. I won’t tell him.” Iwaizumi felt the relief wash over him in waves.

“Thank you.” They both went silent, unsure with how to proceed with the conversation. Suddenly, Michimiya leaned forward and grabbed the scrunched up piece of paper off Iwaizumi’s desk, opening it.

“Can you elaborate on Matsukawa?” She pointed to Iwaizumi’s first scribbled message.

Iwaizumi retold Michimiya the exact details on what he had done that second Friday with Oikawa – the change of plans compared to the first Friday, as well as how he had suddenly felt unsettled and encouraged Oikawa to follow him into the school building. At this stage, Michimiya interrupted, eyes widening.

“Tomorrow should be pretty straight forward, right?” Michimiya had come to the same conclusion that Iwaizumi came to when he was awake recalling events earlier that morning.

“Oikawa only got involved because something had happened to Matsukawa, right? If Matsukawa had never been in harm’s way the first time, then Oikawa would also not have met the killer, and both of them would make it back alive….” 

“Yes,” Iwaizumi confirmed. “Matsukawa was killed on school grounds, but Oikawa was far enough that no Revival happened the second time around. We just need to make sure that Matsukawa isn’t alone after practice.”

“That’s doable, right?”

Spying at Oikawa again, Iwaizumi groaned as another thought came into his mind. Takeru’s check-up. That wasn’t something he could just change, but it effectively prevented him from going after Matsukawa himself.

“The baby check-up with Aimi. If I get myself invited to that again, I can’t really keep an eye on Matsukawa.”

“I’ll stay back,” Michimiya offered. “I can get Matsukawa after practice, you just do the same thing as last time, alright? Stick with Oikawa and keep in touch with your phone.”

“Doesn’t that sound a bit too easy?” Doubt crept into Iwaizumi’s voice.

Iwaizumi watched as Oikawa waved at Nakamura in farewell, then started heading towards Iwaizumi like a magnet again. Crap, he wasn’t quite done with his conversation with Michimiya yet. 

“Iwaizumi, it doesn’t need to be complicated.” Michimiya too had clearly spotted Oikawa’s approach as she whispered into Iwaizumi’s ear, hastily jumping back when Oikawa got near.

“Iwa-chan, Yui-chan, what are you two secretly gossiping about?” Oikawa grabbed a nearby chair, making himself at home as he rested his elbows on Michimiya’s desk, eyes moving between the two like a spectator at a tennis match.

“Not everything revolves around you, Oikawa,” Iwaizumi said dismissively, but unfortunately for him, Oikawa did not back down. Oikawa was such a stubborn brat sometimes.

“Oh?” Oikawa looked positively euphoric as he leaned towards Iwaizumi, forcing him to meet his eyes. “Trying to keep secrets from me, Iwa-chan? I thought I was your best friend.” Oikawa faked a look of horror as Iwaizumi gave him a punch in the arm in response.

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi said in warning, looking at Michimiya apologetically. There was no way they were able to continue with Oikawa in their way, especially seeing as he already suspected that the two were up to something, just not in the romantic way that Oikawa had hoped.

The bell signalling the end of recess rang, students suddenly scrambling to return to their seats. 

“That’s a shame,” Oikawa commented, returning his borrowed chair to its original position and standing up. “But I expect full details after volleyball practice, right Iwa-chan?” Oikawa also had the audacity to wink directly at Michimiya.

“In your dreams,” Iwaizumi sighed, however seeing the determined and set look in Oikawa’s eyes, he was worried that it may be harder to avoid Oikawa’s questioning than he initially thought. Meeting Michimiya’s gaze for one last time before class resumed again, he could see the same worry reflected in her eyes, and really hoped that things would go according to plan.

* * *

The reassurance that Iwaizumi had from being able to _finally_ talk to and plan with Michimiya without interference from other parties (translation: Oikawa) seemed to evaporate the moment that Iwaizumi walked into the gym for Thursday’s volleyball practice. He had been so focused as to what he needed to say after volleyball practice that he completely forgot about Irihata.

Irihata was exactly the same as Iwaizumi recalled from his memories, with his calm demeanour as he casually called out orders for the students to perform during their warm up. However, now knowing the truth about Irihata and how he had been arrested for the murders, Iwaizumi could not help feeling the doubt that had suddenly appeared. Despite Aimi’s insistence of his innocence, could Iwaizumi truly say that he knew Irihata well enough to have the same certainty? What if Aimi was wrong, and it had been Irihata the entire time? 

“Iwa-channnnnn,” Oikawa complained, roughly pulling at his sleeve. “Are you just going to stand there like the rock you’re named after?”

Iwaizumi roughly pulled himself out of his thoughts, deciding that there would be nothing gained from undermining his plan by excessively worrying. Things should still work out even if Irihata was the killer. But Iwaizumi knew he should have more faith in his first instincts, instincts that had automatically raised the red flag when he had heard about Irihata’s incarceration. Iwaizumi followed Oikawa to the change room, focusing and clearing his thoughts. At the very least, he should make the most of and enjoy this session of volleyball training.

One practice match later, complete with Iwaizumi’s fill of getting hit in the back of the head by several overly excited servers (Bokuto would be walking on eggshells around him for the next week, and Oikawa was just Oikawa), practice was over, leaving Iwaizumi feeling slightly refreshed despite his physical exertion.

“Iwaaaaaa, I’ll buy you agedashi tofu for the next week, but please I’m too young to die!” Bokuto wailed, apologising for possibly the fifth time as they were getting changed.

“Iwa-chan is a softy in the inside, you’ll be fine,” Oikawa said with an air of superiority as he swiftly moved out of Iwaizumi’s range. “I’m still as attractive as the day I met Iwa-chan in his mud pit playing with his beloved bugs.”

“You won’t be attractive once I’m done with you,” Iwaizumi threatened, Bokuto both looking anxious but slightly relieved that Iwaizumi’s attention was off him.

“Just-er don’t damage Oikawa beyond repair, yes?” Bokuto said nervously, looking between the pair and positively bouncing in his desire to leave. “I’m heading off to Miya-san’s for some food. Bye!”

Bokuto disappeared faster than a starving Oikawa spotting milk bread across the road.

“Iwa-chan, stop scaring everyone away with your face,” Oikawa commented, amused, as he stuffed the final article of clothing in his sports bag. He picked up his phone thoughtfully as it buzzed against the bench it rested on, reading the new message for several seconds before snapping his phone shut.

“Nee-chan is going to pick me up. She reckons it’ll snow tonight, and maybe tomorrow too. Do you want her to drive you back too?” Iwaizumi felt the déjà vu hit him the same time he recognised the cue for when he should start implementing the first part of his plan. Set things up with Oikawa exactly as he did previously.

“Yeah, sounds good. Can I also stay over for a bit?” Iwaizumi thought he had said something along those lines. A few different words probably weren’t going to make that much of a difference.

“Of course, Iwa-chan! You’re always welcome.” Oikawa’s genuine smile was always quite the sight for Iwaizumi to observe. He _would_ make sure that he could keep making Oikawa smile like that for years to come.

Iwaizumi waited with Oikawa in the gym for Aimi to arrive, briefly replaying the car drive and the conversation that he had with Aimi in his mind. When Aimi finally arrived, positively glowing and in stark contrast to the Aimi he had left behind in 2014, Iwaizumi let himself get caught up in the banter as they drove back to Oikawa’s place. 

Oikawa running madly to the toilet the moment they arrived at their destination also had not changed from Iwaizumi’s memory, eliciting from him an affectionate laugh of amusement. Iwaizumi followed Aimi into the kitchen, retracing his previous steps and accepting her invitation to black tea, letting its familiar smell and warmth fill him. 

“Tooru means a lot to you,” Iwaizumi said absently-mindedly, eyes widening with shock as he realised what he had said. Crap, he definitely had not said that the first time he talked with Aimi.

“Hmm?” Aimi let out a curious sound as she looked at Iwaizumi for several seconds. Iwaizumi took another sip of the tea, breaking away from Aimi’s eye contact, and suddenly feeling nervous. This better not go haywire because he couldn’t stop the wrong things slipping out of his mouth.

“That’s an interesting comment you make, Hajime-kun,” Aimi said, finally breaking the silence. “Tooru is my precious little brother. Of course he means a lot.” 

“Yeah, I was just-um-you know, curious,” Iwaizumi blurted out, not quite sure what he was aiming to say. “You know, um…. I was wondering how things would work once Ta-I mean, the baby comes?”

Seriously, could he get any worse at improvising responses? Probably not, Iwaizumi thought in despair. He didn’t even want to think about how he nearly let Takeru’s name slip.

“Ahhhh.” Aimi tapped her fingers on the counter. “It should be mostly the same, except we’ll have one more person here. Mum thinks I’m too young to have a baby, and I definitely wasn’t thinking properly that night…” Aimi let out a deep breath as she continued. “But that’s a matter for later. Nothing you need to worry about.”

Iwaizumi nodded, feeling Aimi’s eyes on him as he took another sip of tea. Never had he been so grateful to a drink for breaking up a conversation. Aimi definitely knew there was more on his mind than he had said aloud. He was at a loss on how to steer the conversation back to getting invited along to the check-up tomorrow. It would be far too awkward and suspicious if he said it now.

“Why don’t you come along with me and Tooru tomorrow?” Aimi asked after several seconds, resting her hand on her pregnant belly. “I have a check-up for the baby tomorrow, and I was wanting to surprise Tooru. He’s so eager to be an uncle.” Aimi’s smile grew wider. “And also, you’ll probably be as much an uncle as Oikawa. Probably more responsible too.”

“Yes! Of course!” Iwaizumi’s exclamation was definitely louder than he intended it to be, but he could not mask his relief that the conversation reached the goal that he wanted to achieve despite the initial detour. The first part of the plan was set. The rest was all down to Friday now. Iwaizumi definitely felt that he had earnt the rest of the afternoon playing around with Oikawa as a reward.

* * *

Iwaizumi could not help the nerves that he felt when he woke up on Friday morning, however mixed within was also a dash of confidence that he had lacked earlier. Not only did Iwaizumi have a better understanding of what he could expect, knowing that he was not alone in his quest – that Michimiya was there to help - relieved a burden that he did not even know he was carrying. 

The first lot of classes for the day passed by in a blur, Iwaizumi’s mind already visualising the afternoon after volleyball practice. He found himself automatically gravitating to Michimiya when the first recess bell rang, turning his chair around so they could meet at her desk. There was nothing additional that they needed to plan out for later today, but it was reassuring to run over their plans. Michimiya was to look after Matsukawa. Iwaizumi was to look after Oikawa. Stopping Matsukawa from being attacked would prevent Oikawa from being involved and prevent the events from the first two Fridays from occurring again.

“What are you two whispering about again, eh?” Oikawa interrupted with a grin, standing over Iwaizumi. “That reminds me, you never did share your gossip about your blossoming relationship with Yui-chan, Iwa-chan!”

Iwaizumi didn’t even bother concealing his sigh of irritation. “I’m not in a relationship with Michimiya.”

“We sit next to each other,” Michimiya added, getting Oikawa’s attention. “We just wanted to know each other a little better because we haven’t really talked that much.”

“Exactly. Not everything is a dramatic story like everything in your life, Oikawa.”

Oikawa rolled his eyes, whether it was from irritation or amusement Iwaizumi could not be completely certain. “But Iwa-chan, you can still tell me _why_ you suddenly have a sudden interest in being nice to girls!”

“Because you’re annoying and Michimiya isn’t,” Iwaizumi snapped back, attempting to grab at Oikawa who unfortunately moved away.

“Fine, I get it, Iwa-chan! You hurt my feelings again, you brute!” Another signature pout appeared on Oikawa’s face before he decided to move away, disappearing without another noise.

Iwaizumi resisted the urge to rub his temples as he resumed his conversation with Michimiya, before returning to the monotony of class once the bell rang.

It was at volleyball practice when a third, dominant feeling joined Iwaizumi’s existing feeling of nerves and confidence. Unease. It was something that had likely crept up earlier in the day, but only after seeing Oikawa’s serve brutally hit Hanamaki in the face that Iwaizumi fully registered it.

“Makki, I’m so sorry!" 

Oikawa had rushed to the net, just like the rest of their team in front of him, as Hanamaki clutched his nose, now bleeding heavily. However, Iwaizumi picked up a certain lack of energy in his apology that he normally would have. Oikawa also hung back further than he normally would have, and whilst his face was etched in worry, his eyes looked like they were a million miles away. 

“Don’ mind, don’ mind,” Hanamaki replied, still clutching his nose as Matsukawa helped him up. A trickle of blood ran down his face and onto his shirt. Whatever that serve lacked in accuracy, it certainly didn’t in terms of power.

“Oikawa,” Irihata commanded, handing Hanamaki several tissues. “Take Hanamaki to the infirmary. When you get back we need to talk about your serve.” 

Oikawa nodded once, moving towards Hanamaki and leading him to the infirmary without looking back once at Iwaizumi.

“Oooh, if I didn’t know any better I’d say Oikawa is super pissed at something,” Bokuto commented, standing next to Iwaizumi and watching the pair disappear into the distance. “Am I right, Iwaaaaa?”

“Yeah, he is.” Iwaizumi felt himself frown as he wondered what was going on. He had no idea what would cause Oikawa, the king of masking his own feelings, to be so irritated that he would actually let it out in the middle of volleyball practice. It was not behaviour that he had displayed during the previous two practices on this day. Rather, it had been the complete opposite.

“Did you not give him what he wanted, Iwaizumi?” Nakamura laughed beside him, slinging one arm each around Bokuto and Iwaizumi. “You spoil him too much, I swear.”

“Iwa hits him all the time, I don’t think Oikawa asks for it because he’s always complaining about Iwa being a brute?” Bokuto asked, sounding slightly confused but excited at the same time as he started speculating about what was annoying Oikawa.

“Everyone, back in position! We’ll resume with five-on-five play. Minami to serve!” Irihata blew his whistle several times as everyone returned to their positions, cutting off their conversations abruptly.  

Iwaizumi reluctantly focused back on the game, watching Minami’s much-slower serve sail over the net. He aware of Oikawa’s return mid-game and his serious face as he engaged in conversation with Irihata. However, Oikawa stayed on the bench for the rest of practice, his facial expression barely changing as he observed the rest of the practice match. He promptly disappeared into the change rooms once Irihata blew the final whistle, Iwaizumi hurriedly going after him to make sure he didn’t disappear.

The confidence that he had possessed had all but been taken over by nerves and unease. Iwaizumi changed beside Oikawa, thankful that Bokuto had the ability to strike up conversation no matter the mood and fill in what would have been an awkward silence. He really did not want to be worrying about Oikawa’s mood on top of the murder that he was trying to prevent within the hour.

Iwaizumi pulled out his phone, opening up the messaging application. His throat felt dry despite the amount of water he had just drank. This was it. He had to make sure that Matsukawa and Oikawa made it home safely today. Oikawa could save whatever tantrum he was wanting to throw for later.

> **_Iwaizumi [17:20]_ ** ****
> 
> _Practice over. Find Matsukawa. He’s changing atm._
> 
> **_Michimiya [17:21]_ **
> 
> _Heading over. Will msg once done._

As Iwaizumi dropped his phone back into his pocket, he felt, rather than saw, the movement of Oikawa’s head looking away from him. Oikawa slung his bag on his shoulder, waiting for Iwaizumi to do the same before heading to the exit of the gym.

“Cya next week, Iwa, Oikawa!” Bokuto yelled with a grin, waving in an exaggerated manner as Nakamura beside him rolled his eyes.

“Bye!” Oikawa tried to act normally, Iwaizumi could tell. But again, the greeting fell flat as the pair walked into the chilly air, heading towards the school gates where they were to meet Aimi.

All Iwaizumi needed was for Michimiya to successfully meet with Matsukawa and make sure that he was not alone for the killer to go after. Then he could consider his main goals for the day done and dusted. Iwaizumi decided that now was the time to focus on the problem standing right beside him.

“Oikawa, is everything alright?” Iwaizumi really could not think of a better way of raising the topic.

“Of course I’m fine, why wouldn’t I be?” Oikawa smiled, tone light but sounding extremely forced. Iwaizumi held himself back from the urge to just grab Oikawa and stop him from evading the question until he finally let it all out. He contented himself with a sigh, pulling his phone out from his pocket and texting Michimiya that he was currently with Oikawa. Iwaizumi had not received another text from her since the one from 5.21pm.

“Who are you texting?” Iwaizumi was slightly startled by Oikawa’s abrupt question, Oikawa’s tone losing the lightness that he had used earlier. It was almost demanding, and there was something eerily unsettling about the calm, neutral expression that Oikawa was now wearing

“Michimiya…?” It sounded more like a question, but Iwaizumi suddenly felt thrown off-centre.

“Of course.” Oikawa’s voice was clipped, and he was no longer looking at Iwaizumi. “You rarely text me, but I’ve seen you send more texts to Michimiya in a day than you do with me in a week. That’s fine, Iwa-chan.” Oikawa turned back to Iwaizumi, smiling again, but Iwaizumi could see how fragile it was, how it looked like it was about to fall apart any second.

“Iwa-chan, why don’t you trust me anymore?” Oikawa sounded so _broken_ , so fragile, more like his five year old self that had fallen and given himself a massive gash in the knee. The silence that suddenly fell was so thick that Iwaizumi suddenly found himself unable to breathe.

“Oikawa, wait-” Iwaizumi could see the tears starting to pool at the corners of Oikawa’s eyes.

“Why won’t you tell me anything anymore?” Oikawa grabbed Iwaizumi’s jumper, tears now streaming down his cheeks, snot starting to leak from his noise. Oikawa was truly an ugly crier. “I always thought that we could trust each other! But clearly only Yui-chan is worthy to be told your secrets! I thought that our bond was worth more than this. You keep shutting me out!”

Oikawa was now yelling, his voice cracking as he released his grip and pushed Iwaizumi away. His was visibly shaking as his sobs choked up, both tears and snot running down his face.

Iwaizumi felt the phone in his hand vibrate, likely an incoming message from Michimiya, but he dared not check.

Shit. This couldn’t be happening, not right now, Iwaizumi thought. Iwaizumi was barely aware of the fact that he was breathing in short, sharp breaths and that panic clutched his heart tightly in its grasp, its grip getting tighter and tighter by the second.

 _“I know what I’m doing. But you never trust me when I’m doing things on my own, so I won’t bother convincing you,_ Iwa-chan _.”_

Iwaizumi could still hear the venom in Oikawa’s voice, visualise the furious glare in Oikawa’s face from the last time that they argued, the memory serving to make Iwaizumi panic even further. The last time they had argued it had been the last time that Iwaizumi had seen him alive. There was no way he could let Oikawa go like that again. 

He couldn’t let Oikawa die again. There was no way that Iwaizumi could cope with finding him dead again.

Iwaizumi really didn’t want Oikawa to get involved in his mess. He just wanted Oikawa to be safe, but never realised how alienated Oikawa felt instead. Oikawa looked seconds, no, milliseconds away from running off, possibly into the hands of the killer that Iwaizumi knew was lurking around nearby.

There was something warm running down Iwaizumi’s face. He stepped forward, grabbing Oikawa by the arms, his eyes wild with desperation, pleading with Oikawa to understand. Iwaizumi knew there was only one path he could follow at this stage if he wanted to keep Oikawa alive.

“Oikawa, I’m sorry,” Iwaizumi gasped between the sobs that suddenly tore through him. “I’ll tell you everything.”

“It’s a bit late, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa choked up between sobs, but he made no move to break out of Iwaizumi’s grasp.

Iwaizumi hesitated for several seconds, wondering how on earth he could explain everything that had happened. There was no easy well to tell someone that you had gone back ten years in time to prevent their murder.

“Michimiya is helping me with something,” Iwaizumi finally said, moving his arms to fully circle around Oikawa in a hug. Oikawa’s head rested on Iwaizumi’s shoulder, his sobs slowing down but not fully subsiding. “If we don’t do something, someone will be dead within the hour.”

Iwaizumi felt Oikawa go completely still in his arms. The next part would be the hardest. Just because Oikawa had Revival did not mean he would necessarily believe what Iwaizumi was going to say next.

“Oikawa, I’ve gone back ten years in time to change the past. To stop the murder that will happen.”

Oikawa started struggling in Iwaizumi’s grasp, but Iwaizumi had not been the undisputed arm wrestling champion in their grade for nothing.

“Don’t lie to me!” Oikawa yelled, attempting to pull at Iwaizumi’s hair in an attempt to make him let go. “If you don’t want me around just say it, don’t tell me this stupid lie to my face! LET ME GO!”

“No, I’m not letting you go again, Tooru!” Iwaizumi shouted back, hugging Oikawa tighter, ignoring the pain he felt as Oikawa still fought against him. “I’ve seen you dead twice, I won’t let it happen again!”

Oikawa showed no signs of listening to Iwaizumi in his attempts to break free and Iwaizumi finally let him go, Oikawa stumbling and falling on his bottom from the sudden loss of balance. 

“I know you have an ability that lets you go back in time, Oikawa. It forces you to save people, and keeps looping over and over again until you do!” 

“What?” Oikawa was silent, mouth open in shock as he looked up at Iwaizumi. “How?”

Oikawa sounded almost terrified as Iwaizumi bent down, forcing Oikawa to look at him.

“Because after you were killed, I ended up with the ability,” Iwaizumi said softly, placing his hand on Oikawa’s shoulder.

“How?” Iwaizumi felt that the question was aimed more at Oikawa than it was to him.

“Oikawa, if we don’t change things now, someone will die today. This is the third time I’ve lived through this date!” All Iwaizumi could hope for was that Oikawa was open enough to believe him.

“Iwa-chan…. I’ve always wanted to believe in you.” Oikawa sounded defeated as he grabbed at Iwaizumi’s offered arm, pulling himself off the ground.

“I’m sorry. I tried to keep it secret because I didn’t want you to get hurt again.” This time Oikawa returned Iwaizumi’s hug, his hug tight and warm.

“But I still got hurt, Iwa-chan.”

“I know. I’ll make it up to you-”

Iwaizumi’s phone starting ringing, startling both Oikawa and Iwaizumi. Noting that the call was from Michimiya, Iwaizumi prayed that everything that everything had gone to plan. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw a dark shape suddenly move behind a tree, but dismissed it as nerves after things remained still for several seconds.

“All good?” Oikawa met Iwaizumi’s eyes, his worry clearly visible as Iwaizumi spoke.

“Yes,” Michimiya replied, and the relief that Iwaizumi felt relaxed his entire body. In the background of the call, Iwaizumi thought he could hear the sounds of balls bouncing on wood. “Said some of the stupidest things ever, but I’m with Matsukawa in the gym right now.” 

“Can you head over to the gates? I’m with Oikawa right now.”

“Sure, I’ll be there in a bit. Bye!” Once Iwaizumi hung up, Oikawa was practically bursting from impatience, eager to get an explanation.

“Michimiya is coming along with Matsukawa,” Iwaizumi explained, putting his phone back and letting out a sigh of relief.

“Mattsun?” Oikawa sounded extremely confused.

“Oh right. He’s the main person we needed to make sure is safe today.” Iwaizumi briefly explained the events of the previous two Fridays, and his speculations as to why the victim each time was different. Oikawa opened his mouth to ask a question, but was interrupted by the sight of Michimiya and Matsukawa approaching nearby. 

“You two are still here?” Matsukawa asked, curiously looking between Iwaizumi and Michimiya as they greeted each other, Michimiya looking extremely relieved. 

“My sister is picking us up,” Oikawa replied, pointing at Iwaizumi. “It’s a surprise, and Iwa-chan knows about it but won’t tell me.” Matsukawa snorted at the pout that Oikawa suddenly wore, but frowned when he examined Oikawa’s face further.

“Did you cry? Your eyes are red, and your nose is leaking.” Matsukawa pointed out said incriminating line of snot as it suddenly trailed down Oikawa’s lips.

“What? No, you see nothing!” Oikawa frantically tried to wipe his face with his sleeve as Matsukawa burst into laughter.

“I can’t believe you cried over that!”

“No I didn’t, I just rubbed my eyes too hard!”

“You sound like you’re having a lot of fun!” Aimi suddenly stepped out from behind Oikawa, causing him to let out a yelp of shock as everyone’s attention was drawn to her.

“Nee-chan, don’t do that!” Oikawa wailed, looking slightly irritated as Aimi messed his hair up affectionately.

“Oikawa-san,” Iwaizumi greeted politely, Michimiya and Matsukawa also inclining their heads in greeting. 

“Hajime-kun, I’ve told you over and over to just call me Aimi,” Aimi sighed dramatically, but with a smile on her face. “What are you lot all up to this afternoon?” 

“I’m hungry,” Matsukawa drawled, looking casual. “Want a bite before I head home." 

“Same here,” Michimiya quickly added, Iwaizumi picking up on her intent to stay near Matsukawa until he was home safe.

A sudden brainwave hit Iwaizumi, and he looked straight at Oikawa, motioning with his eyes to Aimi’s car and hoping that he would understand the message.

Oikawa frowned for a second as he tried to understand what Iwaizumi was getting at, before his brown eyes widened in realisation.

“Nee-chan, we can drop them off at the shops rightttttt?” Oikawa grabbed at Aimi’s sleeve, giving her a pleading expression.

“Luckily the shops are on the way to your surprise, Tooru,” Aimi grinned, further playing with Oikawa’s hair. “If you want a lift I’d be more than happy to drop you at the shops.”

“Thank you, Oikawa-san!” Michimiya said happily. Matsukawa beside her nodded. 

“Excellent! Everybody get in. We’ll play a game along the way to see if anyone guesses where I’m taking Tooru before he does!” Iwaizumi, Matsukawa, and Michimiya all laughed as Oikawa let out another pout. 

As they walked to Aimi’s car, Iwaizumi met Michimiya’s eyes, wide with excitement. They had done it. Oikawa and Matsukawa were both out of harm’s way, and there was no one left behind for the killer to target.

* * *

Their blood was boiling as they watched the laughing children get into the car, in particular locked onto Matsukawa, who was meant to be in their grasp right now. All that anticipation built up over the week for the kill, for the _thrill_ , and it had just slipped out of their hands right under their nose. Thwarted by childhood angst. How pathetic.

They took a deep breath and forcibly calmed themselves down, refusing to let the anger rule them. There was always next week to satiate their desire. Next week to brush up on things properly.

The kill would be two, no, three times more satisfying.

It always was when things went to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, this hit 15 pages, don’t think I’ve ever written a chapter this long :O Things should be getting more intense and fast paced soon, it may take a little longer for me to get things out as I’ll be quite busy the next few weeks, but I’m excited for the end :) Hope you are all too (and thanks for all the comments and kudos, nothing gets me more excited than seeing the notifications in my inbox)!


	9. (2004) Lights

“I can’t believe you’re actually twenty years old, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa was casually lounging on Iwaizumi’s bed as he exclaimed in mock shock, ignoring Iwaizumi’s look of irritation as he let out yet another exasperated sigh. Michimiya sat beside Iwaizumi on a nearby wooden chair, carefully hiding her amusement as she let the majority of Oikawa’s attention stay focused on Iwaizumi. Iwaizumi felt slightly betrayed at the lack of help she was offering as she carefully averted her eyes from him.

“Yes Oikawa, I’m twenty. And so is Michimiya. You don’t have to repeat it fifty times.” Iwaizumi’s voice had reached the weary tone that had gone beyond annoyance.

“But…. _twenty_. That’s….so _old_.” Oikawa paused for maximum dramatic effect. 

“Your sister is that age, Oikawa,” Iwaizumi grumbled. “Are you calling her old?”

“She’s different.” Oikawa waved his hand dismissively. “But you’re Iwa-chan. We’ve grown up together! And now you tell me that you’ve grown up without me…how did you survive?” Oikawa ended his speech with a dramatic flourish of his arms, looking more like he had delivered a performance on a grand stage.

The word ‘survive’ bought back memories that Iwaizumi would prefer to forget over time.  “I didn’t really though,” Iwaizumi said quietly, staring at the ground as the memories continued flashing in his mind. “I missed you too much.”

Oikawa’s expression fell as he bit his lip, recalling Iwaizumi’s explanation of everything that had happened in the past and future, including the fact that he had been murdered, twice. Oikawa usually had a reaction for everything, but for once in his life he had been stumped. There was no textbook reaction for how to react when you were told that in another timeline, you had died and never made it to eleven years old.

“I’m sorry, Iwa-chan.” The energy seemed to have left Oikawa’s body as he stared aimlessly at Iwaizumi’s carpet.

Iwaizumi suddenly raised his head, feeling anger coursing through his veins. “Don’t ever be sorry for that, _Bakakawa_!” Iwaizumi stood up and sat down roughly next to Oikawa on the bed, forcing him to meet Iwaizumi’s eyes. “You did your best. You were helping others alright! Sometimes though, you need to know when to ask for help!”

“Iwaizumi, you’re one to talk,” Michimiya interrupted, an unimpressed expression on her face as she recalled Iwaizumi’s prior efforts at keeping Oikawa out of the loop. 

“Ok ok, I get it,” Iwaizumi muttered, raising his hands in defeat. “But still – Oikawa, don’t _ever_ doubt yourself again, do you hear me?”

“I won’t.” Oikawa was looking down at the carpet again, and Iwaizumi gave him one of his rarely-delivered hugs, hoping to cheer Oikawa up.

“Just remember to be careful. And that you can tell me everything, alright?” 

“I’ll be careful for you, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa announced, eyes suddenly blazing with determination as the energy that he seemed to have lost returned to him. “I’ll tell you everything I see.” 

“Good.”

The silence that feel across the room for the next minute was companionable, even though Oikawa was kicking his legs back and forth, looking as if he dearly wanted to say something but felt afraid to do so.

After one too many kick against his bed, Iwaizumi could not hold it in any longer. “Just spit it out.”

Oikawa’s expression was guilty as he spoke. “Did they ever prove the existence of aliens by 2014?” 

Iwaizumi nearly fell off the bed in his shock, his laugher echoing as the question shattered whatever lingering negativity there was in the room. “Of all the questions to ask me about the future, it’s about aliens?”

“Iwa-chan, this is a question that is very dear to my heart-”

Iwaizumi, in his sudden feelings of generosity, allowed Oikawa to ask him several questions about the future, from what types of futuristic technology was in use, to any major space discoveries, and finally the plot of Star Wars Episode 3. Iwaizumi briefly recalled that the movie was schedule to come out in 2005, and there was no doubt that Oikawa was impatiently waiting to see it.

“Poor Padmé,” Oikawa sobbed, after Iwaizumi (with much help from Michimiya), had managed to get across the main elements of the Revenge of the Sith plot. “It should never have ended that way!” 

The mood in the room grew sombre once Oikawa had finally run out of questions to ask, the focus reluctantly returning to the original reason for their meeting in Iwaizumi’s bedroom on early Saturday morning. They had to be done with their planning before Iwaizumi’s parents came back, as whilst Oikawa was a familiar face, Iwaizumi did not want to imagine what would happen if his parents caught him with Michimiya in his room.

Michimiya pulled her out notebook, officially starting the discussion that all three of them had been reluctant to confront. “Unlike with yesterday, we don’t know that much about what happened on the 17th,” Michimiya said in a business-like tone, flicking through her notebook. “We may have to make a few assumptions if we want to make sure nothing happens again on Friday.”

Oikawa rested his head on his elbow as he frowned in concentration, the joy and curiosity that he had shown earlier turning instantly serious at the change in topic. “Why are you so sure that something _will_ happen on a Friday though? The killer could change the day of the week right?” 

“That’s my assumption. But the third and final murder was on the 31st December – a Friday. If I was the killer and really wanted to make an impact, I’d choose that date. New Year’s Eve. So the ones before would need to be on Fridays. That leaves the 17th and the 24th.”

Oikawa looked at Iwaizumi as if to silently ask ‘for real?’ He looked clearly uncomfortable with the assumptions that Michimiya was putting forward. Iwaizumi shrugged in response, unable to come up with any better ideas than the one that Michimiya was suggesting.

“We’re going to need to make sure that nothing happens on Friday,” Michimiya continued, not noticing Oikawa’s and Iwaizumi’s silent exchange.

“Then do you have any ideas as to how to make sure nothing will happen?” Oikawa asked, his face seemingly frozen in a frown. Michimiya hesitated for a second before turning to look at Iwaizumi.

“Do you want to share what you remember, and compare it to what I know?” she suggested. Iwaizumi nodded slowly, launching into a recount of the events leading up to his finding of Oikawa in the park the previous Revival, as well as the few details he managed to remember from the first time where Matsukawa had been the second victim. Michimiya added what she knew, however it was immediately clear by the time they had finished discussing that neither of them had provided enough concrete information to come up with any kind of viable plan. There were too many gaps, and too little absolutes.

“So we have nothing,” Oikawa grumbled, looking slightly irritated and frustrated at the same time. “We’re going to _assume_ that there may be another killing on Friday, and we’re going to _assume_ that the victim will be found in the same park, and we’re going to _assume_ that the victim will be related to volleyball so Irihata gets framed at the end?” Oikawa’s voice steadily increased in pitch as he spoke, sounding more and more incredulous at each assumption listed, each one of his statements hitting Iwaizumi hard. They were all valid doubts.

“Yes,” Michimiya said immediately, sounding confident, but her restless movements in the chair she was sitting in betraying her nervousness. “It’s better than doing nothing for the rest of the week.”

It was clear from the look on Oikawa’s face that he heartedly disagreed, and Iwaizumi was starting to feel that all-too-familiar feeling of anxiety and helplessness creep up on him again. There were only two things that he was certain about at this point: that the killer will strike again on Friday, 17th of December, and two, they had absolutely no idea on what to do about it.

* * *

“Do you think that instead of trying to stop someone from being killed that we should instead stop the killer himself? Like get him arrested or something?” Iwaizumi suggested to Michimiya early on Tuesday morning as they wiped the board clean in preparation for class.

Michimiya paused mid-swipe as she considered Iwaizumi’s suggestion. There was a slight frown on her face as she replied. “Wasn’t the whole point of you initially trying to hide this all from Oikawa to keep him out of harm’s way?” Michimiya wiped the final markings off the board before returning the duster to Saito’s desk, Iwaizumi following close behind.

“I know. We don’t have anything better though…” Iwaizumi sounded resigned as he pulled his chair back, sitting down with a gentle plop. “It was just a stupid idea. Forget about it.”

“No, it’s something.” Michimiya pulled at Iwaizumi’s chair, forcing him to turn around. “Let’s just say that we do go ahead with this. Who would you follow? The only name we have right now is Irihata.”

“I suppose we follow him then. That way we can completely clear him, and also if the real killer is following him then we’ll see them.” Iwaizumi sat up a little straighter as he processed his own words, the randomly thrown suggestion not sounding too bad when he started considering it. 

Michimiya opened her mouth to respond, however, their private conversation was cut short by the entrance of one of their classmates into the room. There was no way that they could continue their conversation without looking completely suspicious, and encouraging a round of teasing unique to elementary schoolers. It was only during recess that they had a chance to resume their conversation again, this time with Oikawa who wasted no time in approaching Iwaizumi’s desk whilst wearing an expectant expression.

“Iwa-chan, you’re looking crankier than usual, and that’s something coming from you.” Iwaizumi gave Oikawa a flat glare which Oikawa returned with a wider smile than the one that he initially wore.

“Iwaizumi wants to follow Irihata around and see what he does,” Michimiya began, giving Iwaizumi a slight nod to indicate that she was happy to proceed further with his idea.

“Ooh, like we’re detectives or something? But I thought you said Irihata didn’t do anything right? And I trust him!” Oikawa casually lowered himself on Iwaizumi’s desk like it was his own, eyes widening in excitement as his mind no doubt started visualising scenes from various crime shows that he had seen.

“Oikawa, answer me this,” Iwaizumi said, deciding to dive straight into the heart of the matter. “If it was just you and you wanted to catch a killer after they killed one of your friends, what would you do?” 

“What would I do?” Oikawa sounded slightly incredulous, like he struggled to understand why Iwaizumi would ask that question. “I would try to find the killer’s hideout! In tv shows they always have a place where they leave all their evidence, right?” Oikawa slid his finger up the bridge of his nose, mimicking the actions one would use when they were pushing their glasses up.

“We might as well see what Irihata does after practice then. See where he goes.” 

“Guess that’s our plan for the rest of the week then.” Oikawa nodded enthusiastically in excitement, sliding off Iwaizumi’s desk as the bell signalling the end of recess rang.

* * *

Iwaizumi found it extremely difficult to properly concentrate during volleyball practice, with the thoughts of following Irihata consuming his mind and concentration. To be brutally honest with himself, Iwaizumi felt that the word stalking would actually fit a lot better with what they were about to do, but he convinced himself that this spell of illegal activity was for the greater good. It still did not stop the feelings of doubt and anxiety gnawing away at him as the countdown to when he would have to act got closer. 

Oikawa wasted no time cornering Iwaizumi after practice was done, the bounce in his step clearly highlighting to Iwaizumi that he did not possess the same nerves that Iwaizumi was currently struggling with.

“Iwa-chan, Iwa-chan, what now?” Oikawa whispered excitedly, but thankfully having the foresight to make sure that no one nearby was eavesdropping. “What does the mature twenty year old Iwa-chan command me to do?” Iwaizumi rewarded Oikawa with a swift chop of the head, feeling a slight sense of satisfaction from the yelp Oikawa gave in response. 

“Be quiet for a few seconds-” Iwaizumi again ignored the pout that suddenly appeared on Oikawa’s face. “Then we’ll head towards the school gates where Michimiya is waiting. Luckily for us, she confirmed that Irihata walks to and from school.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go, before we lose him!” Oikawa tugged impatiently at Iwaizumi’s sleeves as he roughly shoved the last few items into his bag before following Oikawa out of the gym.

Oikawa practically sprinted to the school gates where Michimiya was currently standing, attention focused on her phone. Iwaizumi followed closely behind Oikawa and wondered where Oikawa had gotten his sudden burst of energy from. Iwaizumi’s legs were still feeling slightly wobbly and sore from the practice that they had just completed.

“Update?” Iwaizumi asked Michimiya once she spotted them arriving.

“He hasn’t left the gym yet.”

Iwaizumi stared at the gym entrance he knew Irihata would exit from, seeing from his peripheral vision that Oikawa was doing the same. He noted the rather large tree several metres in front of them that would provide a decent vantage point of both the gym and the school gates. As long as they properly spread themselves out and stayed quiet, they should be able to observe Irihata leaving the school unseen.

Iwaizumi drew Oikawa’s and Michimiya’s attention by suddenly pointing to the tree.  “Over there?”

“Well, not like there’s anything else better to hide behind,” Oikawa commented. “Look how skinny the rest of the trees are.”

The trio swiftly moved towards the vicinity of the tree, casually leaning against it as they waited for Irihata to appear. Several minutes later, Iwaizumi spotted Irihata emerging from the gym, bag slung over his shoulder as he started walking towards the school gates.

“Shit, get behind,” Iwaizumi hissed, roughly pulling Oikawa backwards and behind the tree before they could be spotted. “And don't move until I tell you to, Oikawa.” 

Oikawa fidgeted in Iwaizumi’s grasp, eventually breaking his grip on his jacket. “Iwa-chan, no need to be rough, I was just about to move-” 

“Shooosh.” Michimiya waved at them frantically to be quiet as Irihata suddenly stopped walking, his head turning as he surveyed his surroundings with a look of mild interest and curiosity. Iwaizumi resisted the urge to cover Oikawa’s mouth as he opened his mouth again to comment on something likely stupid, fearful that he would make some kind of noise that would give them away.

It was a tense several seconds as Irihata continued looking around, Iwaizumi wishing that he would start moving away. He was not sure how long Oikawa could keep quiet for. To his relief, Irihata finally resumed his walk away from them, turning right at the school gates in the general direction of the local shops. Iwaizumi felt himself relax in relief, however still made sure to raise his hand to signal for Michimiya and Oikawa to wait for several more seconds before moving. It was one of the oldest tricks of the book to lure pursuers into a false sense of security, only to ensnare them in a trap when they thought it was safe.

Iwaizumi lowered his hand once he felt certain that Irihata was unlikely to notice or check for them. “Come on out, if Irihata is just going shopping, we can follow a decent distance behind without looking too weird. Just tell anyone who may know us that we’re shopping too.”

“Aye, aye, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa said in response, giving Iwaizumi a soldier-like salute.  “We can just act normally, right?”

Iwaizumi let out a small sigh of exasperation. “Yes. Just don’t lose sight of him, alright? And no, before you ask, we are _not_ stopping to buy milk bread.”

Iwaizumi picked up Oikawa’s muttered ‘Damn’, as they finally walked through the school gates.

To Iwaizumi’s relief, Irihata was indeed heading for the local shops as it became clear that stealth was something that they would struggle with. Oikawa possessed far too much energy, and part of Iwaizumi also suspected that this tailing of Irihata was partially a game to Oikawa. Despite having believed Iwaizumi’s story, as Oikawa himself had not seen firsthand any of the murders or their emotional aftermath, there would always be a part of him that did not take this as seriously as either himself or Michimiya. That, and the fact that at heart, Oikawa was a ten year old kid.

It was something that Iwaizumi had to remind himself having hung around Michimiya for a while. Because Iwaizumi now had a new insight into how exasperated parents felt when taking their children to the supermarket – why they tried to avoid it in general. 

Iwaizumi had never truly understood the challenges of baby-sitting until today.

“Iwa-chan, he’s grabbing sticky tape, that’s bad, right?” Oikawa’s voice came out slightly muffled as a result of him being currently buried head-first in the supermarket shelf in his attempt to see what items Irihata was placing in his basket through the small gap in between shelves.

“Oikawa, you’re not going to be tying anybody up with sticky tape. Get up!” Iwaizumi hissed, pulling whatever part of Oikawa’s jumper was still visible as he continued to make himself at home in between several bottles of soft drink. 

Oikawa steadfastly ignored him. “He’s grabbing something up high…what’s stocked on top of the sticky tape in aisle 4?”

“Pens?” Michimiya suggested. Michimiya was currently standing beside Iwaizumi, face halfway between amusement and nervousness. She leant forward, attempting to peek through the gaps in the shelves that Oikawa was also trying to spy through, however the gap provided by the lemonade bottles on special did not give her much visibility.

“You can kill people with pens, do you know that, Iwa-chan?” Iwaizumi did not have the energy to reply to that one. The sooner they got out of here, the higher the probability of his sanity remaining. “Oh, Iwa-chan be quiet, I think he’s looking this way.”

“I wonder why,” Iwaizumi grumbled to himself. Oikawa slowly slid himself backwards, making sure that his head was nowhere near the shelves before raising it up and standing. A woman pushing a trolley gave the trio a dirty expression as Oikawa dusted himself off, looking more excited than ever.

“He’s moving out. This way!” Oikawa took the lead, walking towards the exit of the supermarket, before stopping abruptly at the edge of the aisle. Iwaizumi swore as he collided directly with the back of Oikawa’s head, feeling a mouthful of Oikawa’s hair enter his mouth.

“He’s buying two bags worth of stuff…”

Iwaizumi peeked his head around the corner, spotting Irihata packing his shopping bags as Oikawa had mentioned. Several seconds later, Irihata picked up his bags and walked towards the automated doors of the store. 

“Oikawa, let me lead. And don’t talk too loudly!” Oikawa pouted slightly in response but did not protest as Iwaizumi followed Irihata outside, where the sun had now fully set. The streets were shrouded in darkness, illuminated only by the glow of the street lights and any passing car that drove by. Irihata was approximately thirty metres down the street, bag in each hand. 

Oikawa winked in response. “All good, Iwa-chan!”

The trio maintained a steady distance from Irihata as they walked behind him, their surroundings gradually changing from store fronts to more residential apartment blocks. They had walked in amicable silence for several minutes before it was suddenly shattered by the sound of music playing, the crescendo of a piano causing Iwaizumi to jump in surprise.

Michimiya let out a squeak of surprise as she fumbled with her bag, contents shaking as she attempted to pull out her ringing phone. In front of them, Irihata stopped walking, turning as if to investigate what the noise he had suddenly heard was.

“Hide,” Iwaizumi hissed, deliberately backtracking and walking through the entrance of an apartment block they had just walked past. Oikawa nearly fell as the force that Iwaizumi had used to roughly pull him off the street had caused him to lose his balance. Iwaizumi could only hope that by the time that Irihata had turned around, that they had successfully been hidden.

“Hello?” Michimiya said, finally cutting off the ringing of her phone with a frantic press of the answer button. Her voice was at that awkward stage between a whisper and normal conversation as she listened to the person at the other end of the call. “I’m with friends right now.” Whilst the words said by the female voice on the other end of the call were not distinguishable, the tone definitely was. The speaker on the other end of the call, likely Michimiya’s mother, was not happy with her. “I’m sorry. I’ll get back now.”

“I’m sorry guys.” Michimiya hung up with a quick flick her finger, loking apologetic. “I need to get home.”

“No worries.” Iwaizumi slowly peeked out from where they were hiding to get a better view of the street. Turning his head left and right, it was clear that the street was now empty with no sight of Irihata. “I can’t see Irihata. We may as well head off too.”

“We messed up.” Oikawa sounded upset, staring at his feet.

“We can try again tomorrow,” Iwaizumi said in an attempt to cheer Oikawa up. Oikawa nodded slightly.

Keeping their learnings from their experience from Tuesday on their minds, Iwaizumi and Oikawa resumed their surveillance on Irihata again on Wednesday and Thursday. However, both trips proved significantly uneventful compared to the first, and did not uncover any suspicious activity. As far as the pair were concerned, their tailing had proved a waste of time. 

Late Thursday evening had Oikawa stomping towards the only place available at this time of day to provide comfort, which was of course their usual post-volleyball practice haunt - the bakery.

“Iwa-channnnnnn,” Oikawa whined, pushing open the bakery door as Iwaizumi followed closely behind.

Behind the counter, Miyamoto looked slightly startled at the sight of Oikawa and Iwaizumi barging in, much later than their usual time for visit.

“What can I get for you two? I thought practice ended several hours ago?”

“Extra practice,” Oikawa lied smoothly, pointing his finger at his usual milk bread. “We’re going to be the best volleyball players in Japan!” Only Iwaizumi noticed the strain in what others would consider Oikawa’s cheerful voice.

Miyamoto laughed as he received Oikawa’s coins in exchange for the milk bread. “You may have a rival then - my stepson is extremely dedicated to volleyball as well. He has his sights set on Shiratorizawa because it’s the strongest school in the prefecture.” 

“Shiratorizawa, huh?” Whilst Oikawa maintained his pleasant expression, Iwaizumi could sense the undertone of tension in his voice. Oikawa had tried desperately to receive a scholarship or an offer to enter Shiratorizawa’s middle school, but had been rejected on both fronts. From that point onwards, Oikawa had been determined to beat Shiratorizawa on whatever middle school volleyball team he would join, and generally stuck up his nose at any mention of the school. Now was not an exception. 

Iwaizumi purchased the first thing that he saw before joining Oikawa at the table he was sitting at. There were no one else in the store considering the time of evening it was, and Oikawa had chosen the table furthest away from the front counter so Miyamoto would not be able to overhear their conversation.

“Iwa-chan, what are we going to do tomorrow?” Free from prying eyes, there was an edge of panic to Oikawa’s whispered voice. The milk bread remained in his hands, uneaten. 

“I’m thinking okay!” Iwaizumi hissed back, hoping that Oikawa would not work himself up too much over their lack of ideas. “Give me a minute.”

“We can’t just follow Mattsun around you know,” Oikawa continued, voice maintaining its earlier level of panic and ignoring Iwaizumi’s wish for silence. “The killer could target _anyone_ right? That’s what you said you saw in the future?”

“Volleyball,” Iwaizumi grumbled. “It was just volleyball players.”

Volleyball. The word sparked an idea in Iwaizumi’s mind, part of him registering that Oikawa’s comment was not as useless as he initially dismissed it as. He had spent the past week so focused on a singular goal that he had forgotten some of the details that he had learnt from the future.

“Oikawa, we just have to make sure that no one wonders off alone. Matsukawa – I’m 90% sure that the first time around he was at practice, meaning he was killed after.” 

Oikawa threw Iwaizumi an unimpressed look. “Only 90%?” Oikawa took a small bite of the milk bread that he had finally separated from its wrapping.

“Most of the volleyball club are picked up by their parents after practice. It’s just us and a few others that walk home as we live closer.”

“And?” Another bite. It was a good sign that Oikawa was eating at least.

“If you would stop interrupting me, Oikawa, I would tell you.” Oikawa rolled his eyes in amusement but remained silent as Iwaizumi continued. “I forget why, but obviously we didn’t leave school together to go to the bakery or something the first time around. We should arrange a gathering after practice to keep everyone together so no one gets singled out for the kill.”

“That sounds very straightforward. Maybe too straightforward. Shouldn’t plans be more complicated? And don’t we normally hit the bakery anyway or something-”

Iwaizumi raised his hand, stopping Oikawa mid rant. “The killer can only go after one of us if he still wants to frame Irihata okay? It’s easiest for them to go after someone who walks home alone after practice. Get it?” 

Oikawa let out a huff. “I do. Don’t rub in all that knowledge you have from your old age, Iwa-chan.”

Iwaizumi pointedly ignored that last statement. He made a mental note the next time they had an exam to get full marks and rub it into Oikawa’s face.

“Going to the bakery tomorrow still will be an issue as we all go our separate ways after that-”

“Boys, just a heads up we’ll be closed tomorrow afternoon!” Startled, both Oikawa and Iwaizumi jumped as Miyamoto called out to them from the counter. “I’ll be running a stall down at the Pageant of Starlight tomorrow.”

“Pageant of Starlight?” The term was vaguely familiar, one that Iwaizumi knew he should know the meaning of but couldn’t quite grasp.

“Ooooooh!” Oikawa exclaimed, eyes practically sparkling in excitement. “Nee-chan used to tell me stories about the Pageant of Starlight, she got to go last year! You think we’re old enough to go there by ourselves?”

Miyamoto laughed. “You’d have to ask your parents for that.”

“I will, I will. Iwa-chan, let’s go!” Oikawa grabbed Iwaizumi’s arm and dragged him towards the exit, barely pausing as the frigid winter air blasted into them.

“Oi, what are you doing?” Iwaizumi demanded, finally pulling Oikawa to a stop.

“Iwa-chan, we’re going to the Pageant of Starlight.” Oikawa looked up towards the night sky, beaming as he watched the gentle twinkle of stars in the sky. “It sounds so beautiful. I really want to see it.” Oikawa spread his arms wide. “We’re going to invite everyone there, have a good time, and not worry about killers sneaking up on us! It should be busy and crowded, so no one should be able to sneak up on us!”

Iwaizumi examined Oikawa closely, taking note of his genuine excitement and innocent curiosity as he continued smiling. There was no way Iwaizumi could say no.

“Ok, we’ll go tomorrow.”

Iwaizumi only had a second to enjoy the smile that appeared on Oikawa’s face as he tackled Iwaizumi in a hug of thanks.

* * *

There was something about the sight of thousands of tiny lights illuminating brightly against the darkness of a chilly Sendai night that made Iwaizumi truly feel young at heart again. The lights were tightly wound around the numerous zelkova trees that lined Jozenji Street and extended down the street as far as Iwaizumi could see. It was easy to forget the fatigue that he felt from exercise when surrounded by such a sight. Beside him, Oikawa’s eyes were wide with delight as he admired the light display around him.

“Iwa-chan, this is incredible,” Oikawa gaped, his head moving around so rapidly that he reminded Iwaizumi of a bobble head. “Why have we not come here before?”

“I came here last year!” Bokuto crowed in excitement. “It’s always so pretty!” Whilst silent, Hanamaki and Matsukawa behind him nodded in agreement, the normal hint of cheeky scheming in their expressions replaced by a far more innocent excitement as they surveyed the lights around them.

“It feels like Christmas has come early.” Nakamura’s excitement was slightly more restrained compared to Oikawa and Bokuto, but there was no mistaking the look in his eyes.

The positive mood was contagious as the group continued walking down Jozenji Street, the bright lights encapsulating them in a feeling of warmth that kept the true bite of the wind away. Iwaizumi felt like he was walking through a tree-lined Christmas tunnel that ignited an inner festive feeling that he did not realise that he could feel. 

“Oikawa, Iwa, do you spot that?” Bokuto yelled, jumping up several times as he attempted to see past the adults walking in front of them and pointing ahead to where the concentration of lights seemed even bigger than the ones they were currently walking past.

“I smell that,” Hanamaki gasped, his noise twitching as he attempted to smell the air. “It’s food. Definitely food. And it’s sweet too. It could be cream puffs-” 

“So there could be milk bread too, right?” Nothing got Oikawa drooling faster than the mere mention of milk bread. 

“There are tents with festival food and more lights.” At Nakamura’s statement Iwaizumi could indeed make out the large shapes in front of him as tents, as well as movement that signalled that a large crowd was surrounding the tents.

“Let’s go then, food food!” Bokuto jumped up and down in excitement, grabbing the nearest person (which happened to be Nakamura) and pulled ahead, attempting to squeeze through the gaps in the increasingly thicker crowd ahead. Hanamaki and Matsukawa followed nearby, leaving Iwaizumi and Oikawa behind.

“We can’t let them get too far ahead,” Oikawa hissed, grabbing Iwaizumi’s wrist, the lightness of his face from earlier morphing into one of concern. Iwaizumi followed him, reminding himself of their true purpose for coming to the celebration.

They had to stick together. No one was going to get hurt tonight.

“Shit, where are they?” It was as if the crowd had suddenly swallowed their friends, Iwaizumi not recognising any of the people they were surrounded by. Everyone around them seemed far too tall, their joyful faces ignorant of the turmoil that was starting to rage within Iwaizumi as he spun around, around, looking for any particular defining features of his friends.

Bokuto’s defining hairstyle, normally the easiest thing to spot in a crowd, was now lost within a sea of people.

“Iwa-chan, this way!” Oikawa commanded, pulling Iwaizumi abruptly forward, and letting out hurried apologies as he pushed several people out of their way.

“Sorry, very sorry, don’t want to lose my parents!” 

Iwaizumi found it slightly amazing how easily Oikawa could get people out of their way with a few, well-placed tragic expressions and a perfect pitch of despair in his voice. Within several seconds, enough of a gap opened up that Iwaizumi could finally spot the spiked white and black hair of Bokuto. He could tell that Oikawa too had spotted him, his grip around Iwaizumi’s wrist growing uncomfortably tight as he ran on ahead.

“Kou-chan, don’t leave us behind like that!” Oikawa complained when he rather deliberately ran into Bokuto from behind, Iwaizumi nearly losing his balance as Oikawa still maintained his iron hold on his wrist. Oikawa finally let go when he realised that Iwaizumi had nearly fallen, throwing him a rather apologetic smile. Iwaizumi responded with a sudden elbow to Oikawa’s ribs.

“IWA-CHAN!” Oikawa whined, clutching his side and wearing his usual expression of exaggerated hurt.

“You deserved that,” Iwaizumi grumbled, carefully ignoring the sudden smirk he saw on Hanamaki’s face. “I’m not your doll to drag around.”

There was also a look of relief that suddenly made itself visible on his face for a split second, one that Oikawa noticed as he dropped the hurt expression on his face. The group walked for several more minutes before finally made it to the end of the street, where they were no longer surrounded by the illumination of lights coming off the zelkova trees.

“FOOOOOOOOOOD pleaseeeeee! I can’t wait any longer!” 

Iwaizumi’s stomach grumbled in response to Bokuto’s plea. They were surrounded by a multitude of heated tents that promised absolute warmth from the winter, as well as the comfort that could only be provided by food. The various scents of traditional Japanese festival foods wafted throughout the atmosphere, Iwaizumi picking up the scents of yakitori, takoyaki, as well as karaage. Suddenly, heart-shaped illuminations of lights surrounding the various tents lost their sense of magic and festivity, overcome by another, more important need. Food.

The first stall that Bokuto barged towards sold dango, the entire group enthusiastically parting with their hard earnt pocket money to purchase several sticks of the dumpling covered in sweet and salty sauce. 

“Mmmm, this is soooo good,” Bokuto moaned in bliss, licking off stray sauce that had dripped down onto his fingers.

“Can we split up to get our own stuff?” Hanamaki asked, carelessly discarding his finished dango stick. “I know no one else appreciates cream puffs, so I will find them myself-” 

“Makki,” Oikawa said dramatically, crossing his arms as he interrupted. “Christmas is all about being _together_ , don’t just leave us for your cream puffs! We’ll check out every store together alright? Oikawa-san never lies~”

Hanamaki was silent for several seconds as he considered Oikawa’s offer, silently communicating with Matsukawa beside him. Iwaizumi was prepared to back Oikawa up to ensure that they stayed together as a group, before Hanamaki replied. “Fine, if you so insist, _Oikawa-san_.”

“But if Makki doesn’t get his cream puffs tonight you owe him ramen,” Matsukawa added as he smirked widely.

“Oh, that’s a good one Mattsun, thank you!” Hanamaki and Matsukawa shared a high five. Turning to face Iwaizumi, Oikawa gave Iwaizumi a covert nod, acknowledging his goal for his prior action. Iwaizumi realised it may be harder to keep the group together than he thought as they struggled their way through the crowd in the tents in pursuit of food. 

Several times they bumped into familiar faces, also seeking to enjoy the festivities and the upcoming Christmas celebration. Nakamura exhibited far more excitement than he really should have at the sight of the tall, graceful woman that walked hand in hand with their teacher Saito, both of them lost in a bubble of what was undeniably affection.

“Is that a kiss? Is that how adults kiss?” Bokuto gasped in awe as the pair separated themselves from the crowd and towards one of the heart-shaped light features nearby, however not far enough from five sets of prying eyes.

“Haven’t you ever seen your parents do it?” Hanamaki smirked in amusement. “My parents are always on the couch together, clinging to each other like sticky tape, then they start throwing off their clothes-”

“Don’t corrupt him!” Iwaizumi interrupted, slightly horrified at what images Hanamaki may have seen at too young an age. Bokuto was clearly still innocent, and he had no wish to let Hanamaki shatter his current perceptions.

“You’re no fun, Iwa-chan.” Hanamaki’s wink told Iwaizumi everything he needed to know as Oikawa looked between them in mild curiosity.

“Iwa-chan, what do you mean by corrupt?” Oh great, now Oikawa was at it too. Worse, judging by his expression this time Iwaizumi could tell that Oikawa legitimately did not know what they were talking about.

“Oikawa, haven’t you ever wondered where babies came from?” Matsukawa’s grin complimented the smirk that was on Hanamaki’s face, and Iwaizumi could only imagine them as a pair of cobras just waiting to ensnare their unfortunate prey.

“Boys! Volleyball boys!” The shout of a familiar voice drifted from nearby, and Iwaizumi noticed another familiar face coming from a nearby stall.

“It’s Miya-san!” Bokuto did have quite the habit of stating the obvious.

“Cream puffssssss!” Hanamaki’s eyes lit up as he abandoned his ‘educational’ sex talk with Oikawa in favour of food. The entire group scrambled through the crowd towards the packed store, packages and packages of their usual after-practice fare carefully laid out.

Oikawa wasted no time in grabbing for the nearest packet of milk bread, whilst Bokuto was torn between the red bean bun and custard bun. 

“I’m glad to see that you’re all as enthusiastic as ever,” Miyamoto laughed as the boys all but threw him their money in exchange for his sweet food.

“No one else does milk bread as well as you,” Oikawa said through a mouthful of milk bread, now released from its plastic wrapping and straight into his eager mouth.

“And no one else here sells cream puffs,” Hanamaki said, looking almost dreamy as he savoured the explosion of flavour in his mouth after biting down on a cream puff.

“Here’s a special order for Matsukawa-kun as well.” Miyamoto offered Matsukawa the freshly heated bacon roll, as Bokuto beside him finally made up his mind and grabbed the custard bun. 

“Nothing for you, Iwaizumi-kun?” Miyamoto asked, after all of the food had been paid for by the others.

“Running low on money,” Iwaizumi admitted, opening his wallet and spotting only several more coins inside. “I’d probably save it for either tofu or takoyaki.” He closed his wallet with a sense of finality, his stomach starting to protest from the lack of food he was providing it with.

“I saw a takoyaki store earlier,” Nakamura said, turning around and pointing in the vague direction of a park. “It was near the park.”

“Ooh, so takoyaki next?” Bokuto practically bounced in joy as he finished the rest of his bun.

“Guess I’ll see you all after the break when school resumes next year?” Miyamoto said. Oikawa shook his head.

“I can’t stay away that long from milk bread you know.”

“Oikawa, your teeth will fall out if you keep eating that much sugar.” Oikawa pulled his tongue out at Iwaizumi.

“You can’t stop me, Iwa-chan!”

The group again struggled through the crowd as they attempted to make their way towards the takoyaki store, where the familiar aroma was all but taunting Iwaizumi’s famished stomach. He wanted those warm balls of octopus to eat, and he wanted them now.

“Hey Iwaizumi, me and Mattsun will just wait over here for you, just want to finish off what we have.” Hanamaki pointed towards the low wooden fence next to the takoyaki store that was somehow clear of people. Iwaizumi judged the location close enough to the takoyaki store that he could still keep sight of the pair. 

“No worries. Oikawa, Bokuto, takoyaki?” 

“Of course, Iwa!”

The trio approached the store counter, struggling to read the menu before all placing their individual orders. Iwaizumi opened his wallet up to grab the rest of his coins to pay for the takoyaki before Oikawa suddenly grabbed his wrist, Oikawa’s warm hand feeling like a sudden, uncomfortable brand on his wrist.

“Iwa-chan!” Iwaizumi was startled to see that Oikawa was suddenly breathing heavily, the excitement he held several seconds ago whilst waiting for the takoyaki vanishing into one of panic. “Where’s Mattsun? Do you see Mattsun?” 

“What? He’s with Hanamaki right?” Iwaizumi was thrown by Oikawa’s change of mood as Oikawa roughly pulled him away from the store, head moving anxiously left and right as he tried to see over the crowd. Spotting Hanamaki, Oikawa charged through the crowd and grabbed him roughly with his free hand. 

“Where’s Mattsun?” Oikawa demanded, shock rippling through Hanamaki’s face as he took in Oikawa’s expression and the confusion on Iwaizumi’s behind him.

“He’s right next to me, isn’t he?” Hanamaki’s voice trailed off as he looked towards the pole that Matsukawa had been leaning against. “Oh, where’s Mattsun?”

“What- what do you mean, ‘ _where’s Mattsun’_?” Oikawa spluttered, his wide, frightened eyes suddenly meeting Iwaizumi’s. 

At that moment, Iwaizumi registered exactly what was going on as a shot of panic raced through him, erasing all positive feelings that he had accumulated over the night.

Oikawa had just come back from a Revival. And now there was no doubt that Matsukawa had been the trigger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me a lot longer to finish than I expected :( Unfortunately uni has gotten insane, and also this chapter ended up longer than I expected so I cut it. It’s still too long for my liking, and I didn’t edit this as much as I normally would have because I really wanted to get this out before I forget. May (almost certainly will) do minor edits later on.
> 
> The Pageant of Starlight is an annual event held in Miyagi each year – I came across it when I was doing research for this story, and it looked too nice not to feature in some way (and the timing was perfect)! I’d take a look at some photos online, they’re really pretty :)


	10. (2004) Meeting

The shock of realising that a Revival had happened, that he had again _screwed up_ caused Iwaizumi to take several seconds before registering Bokuto’s emergence from the crowd. The knowledge made Iwaizumi feel alienated, the horrible things that Iwaizumi kept hidden within his mind making him unable to fully connect with the innocence and youth of his friends around him.

“Huh, why did you guys all disappear?” Bokuto tilted his head in confusion as he carefully blew on the steaming balls of takoyaki he was now holding. “You two left your orders behind.”

Hanamaki gave Oikawa a slightly confused look before replying. “Mattsun seems to have disappeared.” Iwaizumi instantly looked down at his watch, feeling his panic rising at the lack of action around him. 6:37.

“We need to find him now,” Oikawa said, urgency clear in his voice as he grabbed at Iwaizumi’s arm. “Let’s go.” Iwaizumi could feel Oikawa’s hand shaking where he was currently clutching Iwaizumi’s arm.

“Oikawa, I’m sure he went to the toilet or something, what’s the big rush-”

Oikawa did not bother responding to Hanamaki as he barged directly into the crowd in front of them, Iwaizumi following closely behind him.

“What did you see?” Iwaizumi asked, roughly pushing past people as Oikawa continued moving forward. Judging by the path that Oikawa was taking, it seemed that he had some sort of destination in mind that he was heading towards.

“This is the third Revival.” Iwaizumi stumbled slightly as the jostling and tightness from the crowds was suddenly replaced by the chilly winter air free of people. “We were eating takoyaki, then suddenly Makki asks me whether Mattsun told him where he was going, and I said no and suddenly I’m back at the takoyaki store.” Each word that left Oikawa’s mouth was barely articulated as he scrambled to tell Iwaizumi as much as he could in the limited time that he had. “I’ve run off, checked several areas but I haven’t seen him at all, and Revival only triggers if someone is going to die meaning that-”

“Oikawa, calm down, we can do this.” But internally Iwaizumi was feeling anything but calm as he relied on his Revival-honed instincts to try and pick up any abnormalities that would lead them to Matsukawa before he was killed again. It was slightly frustrating to Iwaizumi that he no longer had the ability to recall events of past Revivals like Oikawa and Michimiya, that he was forced to rely on purely Oikawa’s perspective of events. Oikawa had probably explained the situation several times to him in prior Revivals, and each time he failed Iwaizumi would not remember a thing the next time around.

“Iwa-chan, where?” Oikawa nearly screamed in frustration, hands fisted into his hair as they walked around aimlessly. “MATTSUNNNN!”

“Matsukawa!” All Iwaizumi wanted to see was the sight of that annoyingly messy black hair, but everywhere he looked he only noticed bunches and bunches of unfamiliar faces moving along without a care in the world, the joy on their face a stark contrast to how Iwaizumi was currently feeling.

The side street that they were now walking along next to the festivities had multiple small dark streets leading out towards the suburbs, surrounded by tall buildings that in the current lighting looked grey and sinister. Oikawa was visibly squinting as they stood at the intersection between the street they were currently on and a smaller street leading out. Iwaizumi could not see any further than several metres in before his vision was consumed by the darkness.

Iwaizumi looked down at his watch. 6:40. Three minutes since Oikawa grabbed him in the takoyaki store. It had simultaneously felt both longer and shorter than the actual time that had passed. Iwaizumi knew very well from past experience that standard Revivals never went further back than around five minutes.

So, they had two minutes to save Matsukawa before they hit the point of no return and Oikawa was forced into another Revival at around 6:42. Another Revival that could just as easily claim Oikawa’s life instead. Iwaizumi knew the consequences of those chain of events all too well.

“Iwa-chan, I don’t know where else to look!” Oikawa looked on the verge of tears as he turned around desperately, running to the next intersection that they saw for any unusual movements or suspicious individuals, but everything was far too still. “I feel like I’ve already checked everywhere!” 

There had to be something. There was always something. If Iwaizumi was snatching a child in the midst of a large crowd, he would naturally head towards a less populated area to do…whatever he was planning to do.

But there were too many streets to check, and it was as if visibility was unnaturally poor just to spite them.

Iwaizumi’s head turned away from Oikawa at the sudden sound of feet heavily meeting the concrete, drawn towards the boy running straight towards them with a torch in his hand. He had barely registered his presence when the boy – intentionally or not Iwaizumi could not tell – ran straight at Oikawa, bumping into his shoulder as he passed.

“Watch where you’re going!” Oikawa yelled, snapped out of his frustration by the sudden impact that had caused him to stumble backwards. “Do you even-”

The boy had dropped his torch after colliding with Oikawa, the torch rolling inside the dark street that Oikawa had passed earlier. Oikawa was drawn to the motion of the boy moving towards the torch, and had moved towards him, likely to force out an apology, before another movement caught his eye.

“Hello, is somebody there?” Oikawa was greeted by silence, but he had the sudden boldness to walk further into the street, grabbing the torch that had just been picked up off the ground without a second thought. 

Right on the periphery of the light offered by the torch, Iwaizumi saw a small, white sneaker.

“Matsukawa!”

In panic and realisation, Oikawa lifted the torch higher to reveal the sight of an unmoving Matsukawa in the arms of a masked adult, who was in the motion of lowering Matsukawa into a large crate that no one would have looked twice at during the festival. Ten seconds later and Matsukawa would have been completely out of sight. 

Oikawa did the one thing he knew would draw attention. Oikawa took a deep breath and screamed, the scream echoing eerily between the buildings that surrounded them, Iwaizumi unable to resist the urge to flinch at the pitch and volume.

“HELP, HELP, KIDNAPPER!” Iwaizumi joined Oikawa in yelling as he motioned to the other boy who still stood behind them to run for help. The boy nodded once, Iwaizumi registering his dark olive eyes and rather stoically-set face as their eyes met momentarily before the boy ran out towards the crowd. 

The would-be kidnapper looked at the crate he had behind him, then towards Oikawa and Iwaizumi making a large amount of noise, and to the mass of people at the celebrations behind him that would no doubt be on high alert. There was no way that the killer could pretend to blend in with the crowd and take Matsukawa away, and the trio in the dark street all knew that fact.

With a sudden, swift movement, the kidnapped dropped Matsukawa into the crate behind him and pushed it right towards Oikawa and Iwaizumi. Both boys let out exclamations of pain as the wooden structure hit both their legs hard, the force increased by Matsukawa’s weight and the rough push the kidnapper had used to push the crate towards them.

“Shit,” Oikawa yelped, struggling to untangle himself from where he had fallen on top of Iwaizumi. By the time both boys were on their feet, the masked man was more than gone.

“Oikawa? Iwaizumi? What’s going on?” Iwaizumi nearly melted in relief when he spotted the familiar face of Irihata, standing alongside a woman sharing features so similar that they had to be related.

“Someone tried to kill Mattsun!” Oikawa pointed roughly at the crate, where slight groans indicated that Matsukawa was stirring.

“Oi….ka…waaa?” Matsukawa mumbled as he attempted to stand up, but stumbled back into the crate as his legs gave out beside him.

“Take it easy, take it easy, help is on the way,” Irihata reassured, hooking one arm around Matsukawa’s waist and pulling him out of the crate. 

Oikawa and Iwaizumi walked slowly towards the light, leaning against the building as they watched Irihata help Matsukawa.

“At least we know it’s not Irihata,” Iwaizumi said weakly, careful to keep his voice low. “The killer is taller.”

Oikawa nodded once, but his focus seemed elsewhere as he chewed anxiously on his lip. He looked straight at Iwaizumi, taking in a sudden intake of breath before speaking. 

“Iwa-Iwa-chan, I think he…knew?” Oikawa sounded as if he doubted his own words the moment they left his mouth, but Iwaizumi understood exactly what Oikawa was getting at.

It was too much of a weird coincidence for the boy with the torch to run into them at that particular moment of time and lead them straight to Matsukawa. Iwaizumi had gone through far too much to believe in coincidences like that.

“He’s….the one that can see into the future,” Iwaizumi responded, looking back towards the crowd and hoping that maybe, just maybe the boy would return. But in the darkness that they had met in, the only feature Iwaizumi could recall was his olive eyes, and the calm look on his face that would make sense if he had set up Iwaizumi and Oikawa for success. 

“He saved Mattsun, we couldn’t do anything at all, why am I so useless?” Oikawa held back from crying, but only just.

Iwaizumi too felt a sense of despair and inevitability as everything that had just happened sunk in. 

It had been far too close this time. Far too close. Iwaizumi did not have any words of comfort for Oikawa, could not say anything to cheer him up, not when he could barely hold it together. They stood together, leaning against the building, not caring about the uneven surface that dug into their backs.

It was in that despondent state that Irihata approached them in several minutes later, Matsukawa now safely with paramedics as they checked over him to ensure that no lasting damage was done.

“Iwaizumi, Oikawa.” Iwaizumi looked up to meet Irihata’s eyes, seeing the sympathy and sadness etched there. Iwaizumi could feel how genuine the emotions were, and wondered how he had ever suspected Irihata of being the killer. “The police will be coming over to have a chat with you two, do you want to wait somewhere more comfortable?”

Iwaizumi nodded, pulling Oikawa alongside him, who was unusually silent as he walked, staring at his feet as he put one in front of the other. Oikawa briefly looked up as they entered the brightly lit area of the Pageant of Starlight, however he still remained silent as they sat down on a nearby bench.

“Tooru! Are you alright? Tooru!” Oikawa’s blank expression turned into one of surprise as his sister came running over, pulling him up from the bench and engulfing him in a hug. Following closely behind was Saito, out of breath and with his clothing dishevelled.

“I contacted Oikawa-san!” Saito said, still trying to catch his breath. “I figured it would be better to have a familiar face around the boys when the police talk to them.”

“Nee-chan, you can put me down.” Oikawa’s voice was muffled where it was currently buried in Aimi’s chest, Aimi still clinging tightly to him.

“Tooru, do you know how worried I was?” Aimi finally put Oikawa down, letting him sit down with Iwaizumi again. “And that applies to you too Hajime, you two were both to close to-”

“Oikawa-san,” Irihata interrupted. “The police are here.”

“I see.”

Irihata beckoned the boys to stand up, Iwaizumi spotting the distinctive livery of the police car parked nearby, and the officer that had just gotten out of it.

“Irihata, I will let you take care of things,” Saito said, attempting to neaten his messed up hair but failing. “Let me know how it goes later on.”

“Will do.” Aimi walked beside Irihata as he led them towards the waiting police car, Iwaizumi and Oikawa walking slightly behind so they could have a quick conversation without being overheard. Iwaizumi opened his mouth to speak before he was suddenly interrupted by a passer-by that had suddenly bumped into him, forcing him to grab Oikawa to maintain his balance. It was a few more seconds before the pair could manoeuvre themselves into a position optimal for private conversations.

“It was an accident,” Iwaizumi whispered, saying it as a mantra. “We found Matsukawa by accident. That’s all we can say. We can’t say anything about our killer.” That was probably Iwaizumi’s biggest pain point, that they knew that there was a serial killer out there, but no way to possibly convince the police of their situation without sounding completely insane.

 “I know, Iwa-chan, I know.” Oikawa remained downcast as they walked towards the police car, feeling some comfort in walking right beside Iwaizumi.

* * *

 

The atmosphere in Oikawa’s bedroom was nearly stifling as Iwaizumi and Oikawa sat together on the floor of Oikawa’s room, leaning their backs on the edge of Oikawa’s bed and neither of them bothering to turn on the lights. It had been a draining night, the police questioning taking over an hour and sapping whatever remaining energy that they had remaining.

“Iwa-chan,” Oikawa said quietly, staring up at the dark ceiling of his room. “I don’t want anybody to die. I don’t know if I can handle this anymore.” There was an unmistakable quiver in his voice that indicated he was trying to hold back from crying.

“I feel the same.” Iwaizumi rubbed his hands together, attempting to use the friction to warm up his hands but failing, a combination of the Miyagi winter and his own internal sense of being frozen in the inside preventing him from gaining comfort from warmth.

Oikawa shuffled closer to Iwaizumi so their arms were both touching, Oikawa resting his head on Iwaizumi’s shoulder. “It wasn’t until Mattsun disappeared that this all got…. that this all…felt so _real_.” Iwaizumi heard Oikawa sniff beside him, and this time knew that the tears that he tried to hold back were coming out.

“It’s always worse when you know who you’re trying to save.” Oikawa let out a short sound of agreement as he turned his head slightly, no doubt trying to hide his face from Iwaizumi. “Oi, don’t wipe your snot on my jumper. I already know you’re an ugly crier.”

“So mean, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa’s voice was muffled from where it was still buried in Iwaizumi’s jumper. Iwaizumi sighed, reaching for Oikawa’s shoulder and gently lowering him so his head rested in Iwaizumi’s lap. Iwaizumi ran his hand through Oikawa’s brown hair, massaging it in circular motions in the hope that it would help Oikawa relax a little.

“Is this better?” Iwaizumi felt Oikawa nod, his face turned away from Iwaizumi as his body occasionally shook from the sobs it was letting out.

They remained silent for several minutes, Iwaizumi continuing his routine of playing with Oikawa’s hair, letting Oikawa cry silently in peace. Iwaizumi let his mind clear as he focused purely on his hand running through Oikawa’s hair, enjoying the silky sensation on his fingertips, relishing in the fact that it was only him that Oikawa would let down his guard around. Iwaizumi shoved his free hand into his pocket, feeling slightly surprised when it was met with something hard and slightly pointy, like a scrunched up piece of paper. He let it roll in his palm for several seconds before deciding that he would take a better look later once he had some decent lighting.

“Iwa-chan, are you scared of dying?”

“What?” Iwaizumi nearly jumped up in shock at the question that Oikawa asked. “Why would you ask something like that? No one is dying!”

“I realised that I’ve seen so many people _die_ Iwa-chan! Just because I save them later doesn’t mean that I didn’t see them die the first time. Does it hurt? What happens after we die? You said I died before, didn’t you?”

Iwaizumi stopped his motions through Oikawa’s hair, roughly rolling him onto his back so he was force to look up at Iwaizumi. 

“I don’t know. No one knows the answer to that.” Oikawa’s face was tear streaked as he continued to look up at Iwaizumi, his breath audibly shaking. “But we can’t live scared of what we don’t know.” Oikawa started squirming, indicating that he wanted to roll over to his side again, however Iwaizumi grabbed his shoulder to make he couldn’t move. “Oikawa, listen to me.”

“What is it, Iwa-chan?” 

“I won’t let anything happen to you. Oika- Tooru, we’re going to go to middle school together, we’re going to play volleyball, and we’re going to win together. I won’t let anything, _anyone_ , stop us.” It had been a while since Iwaizumi had called Oikawa by his first name, ever since Oikawa had expressed the desire to act more grown up by going on a last name basis. Not that Iwaizumi thought that Iwa-chan was any less childish than Hajime. He’d prefer Hajime actually. 

Oikawa laughed softly. “We’ll win Nationals together. You as ace. And me as your setter.”

“Definitely.” The silence that came was no longer stifling as the pair felt themselves relax at the promise made. Iwaizumi resumed his gentle messaging of Oikawa’s head, repeating the circular motions over and over until he felt himself claimed by sleep.

* * *

Iwaizumi woke up to the feeling of movement in his lap and sunlight making its presence felt. He was also painfully aware of how stiff his neck felt, and how the weight on his lap seemed to be getting heavier.

“Oikawa, get off,” Iwaizumi groaned, forcing his legs to straighten out and finally getting Oikawa’s weight off them.

Oikawa let out a yelp as he rolled on the floor, slowly pulling himself up into a sitting position as he rubbed at his eyes.

“Iwa-chan, so mean.” Oikawa yawned, seeming to register the fact that it was early morning. There was also a blanket wrapped around his shoulders that was no doubt placed on top on him sometime during the night. A similar blanket was also lying in Iwaizumi’s lap from where it had slid from its original position.

The door to Oikawa’s room slid open as Oikawa’s mum peeked her head in, letting out a smile at the sight of the two boys on the floor. “Ah, you’re both awake! I have breakfast ready for you both downstairs.”

Oikawa instantly perked up at the mention of food. “Iwa-chan, if you don’t hurry I’m going to eat it all!”

Food always made Iwaizumi feel better, and the fact that Oikawa’s mum cooked just as well as his own mum made it ten times better. Iwaizumi was content as he savoured the flavour of the tofu that he had just spooned into his mouth, the negative feelings from the previous night seemingly fading away. With his mind clearer after sleep, Iwaizumi was able to realise the one benefit of the events that had happened the night prior. The police were now aware of the presence of their serial killer and were still on the lookout for him. It was no longer just Iwaizumi and a bunch of nine year old kids with special powers going up against the unknown criminal.

Iwaizumi headed home after breakfast after Oikawa’s mum mentioned that she needed to go shopping. Whilst Iwaizumi had been invited along, he simply was not in the mood to go shopping and preferred to rest at his own place. Lying on his own bed came with the added benefit of stretching out the final kinks in his muscles that had built up overnight when he had fallen asleep sitting up.

Iwaizumi had been napping for nearly twenty minutes before he rolled over to his side, flinching slightly when he felt something hard and pointy dig into his side. He vaguely recalled finding something in his pocket the night before, reluctantly moving back into his original position so he could finally pull it out of his pocket. Iwaizumi’s fingers unwrapped the ball of paper slowly, still feeling the fog of sleep in his mind as he blinked several times to bring the message written on the paper into focus, trying to remember when said object had entered his pocket.

Iwaizumi read the paper once. Then twice. It was only on reading it the third time that the contents of the message imprinted itself in his mind, and he abruptly sat up, adrenaline coursing through his veins, his exhaustion suddenly gone. When, when?

He remembered with an almost horrifying clarity the moment that someone had bumped into him as he headed with Oikawa towards the police station the night before. Iwaizumi still remembered how he had nearly lost his balance, but he had never bothered looking up, seeing the face of the person who had bumped into him, _the killer they were looking for the entire time_.

_You can have Matsukawa. But the cute little boy with the brown hair is mine._

Iwaizumi dived across his bed, scrambling to grab his phone and accidently pressing the wrong buttons several times in his haste to call Oikawa. The phone had barely rung once before Oikawa picked up, his voice merry as he spoke.

“Iwa-chan! This is a first. What have I done to finally get you to call me-”

“Oikawa, please.” Oikawa on the other end of the line must have picked up some of the fear in Iwaizumi’s voice as he cut himself off, letting Iwaizumi speak. “Where are you right now?”

“Still at the shops with mum, she always takes sooooo long. Did something happen?” Iwaizumi faintly heard the rattling of a shopping trolley in the background of the call.

“I need to show you something. When do you think you’ll be done?”

“I’ll ask quickly, Iwa-chan hold on!” Iwaizumi heard background noise for several seconds before Oikawa returned with a crackle on the call.

“I can meet you at Miya-san’s at 10:30? I wanna grab some quick milk bread first!” Iwaizumi sighed but did not protest at the suggestion, feeling that Oikawa was definitely going to need that milk break after he read the note.

“Yeah sure, I’ll see you then.”

“You should call me more often, Iwa-chan! There’s nothing like hearing your voice over the phone!” Iwaizumi would have laughed and shot back a sarcastic comment if he were in the proper mood to do so. 

“Don’t be late, ok? I’ll see you then.”

“Byeeeeeee~”

Iwaizumi placed his phone back down once the call ended, feeling some of his panic fade away at the sound of Oikawa’s voice. Oikawa was with his mother. He should be fine. Right? Iwaizumi roughly shoved the note back into his pocket, letting himself fall back onto his bed as his too-awake brain started considering possible plans of action.

The note, for once, should definitely be handed into the police. After all, hadn’t Iwaizumi just reminded himself that he was no longer alone, that the police were now aware that the killer was out there? Iwaizumi made up his mind to contact his police together with Oikawa once they had met up, which also led him to thinking about one other person.

Michimiya. She was the only other person who knew what was going on, but Iwaizumi suddenly felt extremely reluctant to get her involved. Of the trio, she was the only one that the killer was likely unaware of, and it was something that Iwaizumi there on the spot decided he wanted to keep that way.

Iwaizumi took one final look at the clock on his display and rolled off his bed, resolute in his next steps of action and leaving his house with a quick farewell to his mother. 

Iwaizumi’s hand remained clenched around the note in his pocket as he briskly walked towards the bakery, eyes focused on the footpath in front of him. The bright blue sky and gently breeze was a far cry to how Iwaizumi was currently feeling, his anxiety rising with each minute creeping towards 10:30. He would let Oikawa get his usual milk bread, then lead him somewhere private and with a relatively calm atmosphere and show him the note.

The message scrawled on that note kept running through Iwaizumi’s mind like a broken record.

_The cute little boy with the brown hair is mine._

Iwaizumi tightened his hold on the note even further, feeling his fingernails start digging into his palm.

_The cute little boy with the brown hair is mine._

The door to Miyamoto’s bakery opened with its usual bell chime, Iwaizumi instantly engulfed with the sweet smell of freshly baked bread that would on any other day be comforting. The bakery was unusually empty, the tables that were usually packed at this time of the day vacant. Iwaizumi slowly opened his fist and let the note slide from his hand, massaging his hand slightly once it was free from his pocket.

“Just you today, Iwaizumi?” Miyamoto greeted as Iwaizumi entered. Miyamoto was practically beaming at Iwaizumi, who felt slightly out of place at seeing his enthusiasm considering the lack of customers in the store. Then what Miyamoto said fully registered in Iwaizumi’s brain, reigniting Iwaizumi’s worry.

“Oikawa isn’t here yet?” Iwaizumi asked in confusion, looking down at his watch and confirming that it was 10:30.

“Oikawa?” Miyamoto’s face morphed into one of surprise. “I haven’t seen him today.”

“Oh.” 10:31. Oikawa was probably running late, Iwaizumi rationalised. It was possible that his mum was getting him to do one last thing before he was allowed to meet Iwaizumi. That was it. Iwaizumi took a deep breath to stop himself overreacting before meeting Miyamoto in the eye. “Uh, can I just get some milk bread?”

“Sure.” Miyamoto grabbed a pair of tongs and slid open the glass panel of the food display, allowing him to pull out the milk bread. “I’m guessing this is for Oikawa-kun though right? I’ve never seen you eat this.”

“Yeah, it is.” Iwaizumi quickly paid Miyamoto before heading to a random table near the window, satisfied it would give him sufficient warning when Oikawa arrived. Iwaizumi stared out of the window, scanning the street for any sign of Oikawa. The street was as busy as expected on a Saturday morning, with families walking cheerfully down the footpath, food and shopping in hand. But not a trace of Oikawa’s distinctive brown hair.

Iwaizumi looked down at his watch again, trying to keep his thoughts in line.

10:35. It was only five minutes. Five minutes was not a very long measure of time. 

Iwaizumi found his hand straying towards his rarely used mobile phone, pulling it out and resting it on the table in front of him. He was overreacting. It was only five minutes. 10:36. Well, six now. It wasn’t like Oikawa was the most punctual person in the world.

 _Oikawa would never be late if milk bread was on offer_ , the more pessimistic, cynical part of Iwaizumi’s brain so helpfully pointed out. And at that point, Iwaizumi didn’t care that he could be overreacting and something perfectly normal delayed Oikawa. He needed to hear Oikawa’s voice, and have the physical reassurance he was safe. 

It took Iwaizumi several seconds to figure out how to make a call on his phone, his brain still used to the smartphones of 2014, however when he finally found the contact entry corresponding to Oikawa he did not waste any time in pressing the call button. Clenching the mobile tightly in his hand, Iwaizumi pressed the phone against his ear with slightly more pressure than he normally would have in his anxiety.

_Ring ring. Ring ring._

Iwaizumi could feel the sweat building on his palms as the phone line kept ringing.

_Ring ring. Ring ring._

_Oikawa, please pick up,_ Iwaizumi thought desperately. _Please._ Iwaizumi closed his eyes, feeling a familiar pressure building up in his eyes.

_“Yahoo~ It looks like the aliens have finally decided to visit the mighty Oikawa-san! I’ll get to your message after I return to Earth.”_

“Fuck,” Iwaizumi breathed, dropping the phone on the table and cradling his head in his hands, part of him wanting to laugh at Oikawa’s voicemail message, the other despairing at the fact that he had reached voicemail in the first place. There was no point in redialling. If Oikawa was able to answer his phone, he would never have let it reach voicemail, considering his prior enthusiasm to Iwaizumi’s call. He couldn’t bear to check the time any more. Iwaizumi was not sure how long he sat in that position before he felt someone approach him.

“Is everything alright?” Iwaizumi looked up, meeting Miyamoto’s concerned expression.

“I’m not sure where Oikawa is,” Iwaizumi blurted, quickly checking his phone to see if he had received any messages, but there were no new notifications. “He’s late. Really late.” The time on his phone display had read 10:50. If Oikawa was going to be this late, he would have spam messaged Iwaizumi for sure. Something had definitely happened to him.

“Why didn’t I just tell him then?” It was his fault. Iwaizumi bought his hands up to his face again, feeling the anger, frustration, and guilt swirling through him like a maelstrom. Iwaizumi should have warned Oikawa that he was the next target, they had no guarantees that the killer would stick with their Friday timeline anymore after thwarting him the previous night, why hadn’t Iwaizumi told Oikawa?

“Tell him what?”

“I was thinking aloud.” Iwaizumi couldn’t even bear to look up any more.

“If you want, we could go look for Oikawa together? You seem really worried for him.”

Iwaizumi finally mustered the energy to look up, surprised by Miyamoto’s offer.

“Don’t you have to…” Iwaizumi briefly motioned at the empty bakery.

“It’s fine, today seems to be a slow day so I can take a little break! Plus, my wife will be coming in later to look after the store, it’ll all be fine." 

Iwaizumi looked down at his watch again and made a decision. There was no point in waiting for Oikawa to turn up. Iwaizumi pushed the chair back and stood up, meeting Miyamoto’s eyes.

“Thank you. I’m not sure where to look though.”

“No worries, no worries, just give me a few minutes and we’ll drive around town to look for Oikawa-kun. Sounds good?”

Iwaizumi nodded, his throat feeling too dry to speak. He remained standing still where he had gotten up as Miyamoto briefly organised the store, before waving at Iwaizumi to follow him several minutes later.

Iwaizumi looked down at his watch again as he left the bakery with Miyamoto. The only thing he could hope for was that Oikawa was still alive.

_[11:01]_

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**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so, the final player arrives :) Final stretch, yay!
> 
> I had the draft for this done for a good week, but never got around editing until today (and even then, it was a super fast edit so may have missed stuff), because uni has just gotten so busy :( Will try my best with the next one, but if my thesis is going the way I think it is, I might not be able to anything out until November TT_TT


	11. (2004) Pawns

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.

_[10:40]_

Oikawa had always prided himself on being one of the smartest students in his class, but even his more advanced vocabulary failed him now as he struggled to find a word to capture how he was currently feeling. Iwa-chan, with his grown-up brain, would probably know the perfect word for it, or at least a rather brutish version of it. Oikawa let out another groan, possibly the tenth, or twentieth groan he had let out within the last hour in his utter frustration. He had lost count and he didn’t care, because Oikawa had never felt so sickeningly horrid in his life before. He felt as if some spiteful, possibly jealous boy in his class had cursed him to this pain so he would no longer be able to play or chat to the pretty girls in his class. It wasn’t Oikawa’s fault that everyone wanted to hang out with him, was it?

What else could explain the utterly sudden stomach ache that had befallen him, the stomach ache that had kept Oikawa confined to this particular cubicle in a public toilet for who knows how long? Don’t even get him started on the germs that he was probably surrounded by as he remained hunched over his legs, trying to find any position to alleviate the pain. 

The icing on top of the cake was the fact that somehow, Oikawa had misplaced his phone. So not only was he probably _extremely_ late to his catch up with Iwa-chan (although Oikawa would definitely take Iwa-chan’s anger over this pain any day), he was without any distraction from the constant stabbing pain he was currently feeling. Hopefully Miya-san would pass on the message that Oikawa was running late because he was feeling sick.

“Iwa-channnnn,” Oikawa moaned, slowly sitting up and staring at the toilet door as if the mottled pattern had somehow changed in the last five minutes since he had last taken a peek. “Days that begin with free milk bread should never end this badly.” 

Oikawa slumped forward again, head in his hands, as he continued trying to ignore the horrible sensations in his stomach and the fact that he had never felt so thirsty in his life before.

Sometime later, Oikawa had finally managed to walk out of the men’s bathroom feeling like a changed person, finally, and _hopefully_ liberated from that stomach ache. Oikawa stared longingly at a nearby store selling drinks, his parched throat crying out for any kind of hydration, however Oikawa had his priorities firmly set upon finding out the current time. He needed to mentally prepare himself for Iwa-chan’s anger, because Oikawa knew without a doubt that he was extremely late for their meeting.

There was a bit of worry mixed into Oikawa’s emotions too. Somehow, when Iwa-chan had called, he sounded scared. Why was Iwa-chan scared? Did something happen? Iwa-chan had always been the brave one, the only one who had the courage to approach nasty things like beetles and insects. Oikawa had always liked putting up a brave front, but it was exactly that, a front. He believed that Iwa-chan was also brave in the inside too, and the mere thought of anything that could make his unwavering best friend scared had Oikawa absolutely petrified.

“Excuse me!” Oikawa called out, drawing the attention of a nearby shopper that had just walked past. “What time is it?”

The shopper looked confused for a second, surprised to see Oikawa wondering alone, but looked at the watch on her wrist before replying. “It’s 11:05.”

“Thank you very much!” Oikawa gave the shopper a brief bow before bursting into a run, heading towards the exit of the shopping centre. Iwa-chan was definitely going to be fuming at how late he was, and for once Oikawa felt that he deserved it.

Oikawa’s heart was beating frantically as he sprinted madly down the footpath towards the bakery. He maintained just enough awareness to dodge any oncoming people heading his direction, but Oikawa’s thoughts were firmly focused on Iwa-chan. He knew Iwa-chan would be worried. Iwa-chan would be _way_ more worried after what had happened last night. The images of Mattsun lying unmoving in the alleyway last night, of his attempted kidnapper running away, burnt themselves in his mind as Oikawa did his best to stop himself from panicking at what was going on.

Oikawa skidded to a stop at the entrance of Miya-san’s bakery, hands on his knees as he attempted to catch his breath, chest heaving. He stumbled through the entrance, the doorbell jingling lightly in response, as he quickly scanned the bakery for any sign of Iwa-chan. The bakery was fairly empty apart from a couple sitting at the back, their conversation reaching Oikawa in a faint murmur and ignoring Oikawa’s rather loud entrance into the store.

“Oikawa-kun, you look exhausted today.” Oikawa looked up, meeting the dark olive eyes of Miyamoto’s wife behind the counter.

“Have-have you seen Iwa-chan?” Oikawa panted, wasting no time in exchanging greetings as he leaned heavily against the glass cabinet holding all the food available for sale. A small part of his brain also picked up on the lack of Miya-san at the bakery, but his current priority was focused on finding Iwa-chan.

“Iwa-chan? Your friend?” Miyamoto’s wife looked slightly taken aback by the question and at Oikawa, who continued to suck in the air around him like he was suffocating.

“Yes, spiky hair, angry looking person!” Oikawa would have prided himself on his description of Iwa-chan if he wasn’t feeling so anxious, wasn’t feeling the unmistakable signs of panic threatening to take over. 

“No, I don’t think so, but then I only just came in, I can ask-”

“Please ask!” Oikawa demanded, starting to feel frantic and really wishing that he had his phone on him. Oikawa refused to acknowledge the tears that were starting to well up at the corner of his eyes.

“Oh, okay!” Miyamoto’s wife scrambled away from the counter, reaching out for the phone nearby.

“Thank you.” Oikawa dropped into a nearby chair, frowning as he tried to recall where he had left his phone, cursing himself for his lack of memory. When he had initially arrived at Miya-san’s earlier this morning, he recalled playing with it whilst eating his milk bread. When was the last time he had used it, when was the last time he used his phone? Oikawa cursed his lack of memory again, anger now joining the maelstrom of emotions he was experiencing.

“Could you also ask Miya-san if he’s seen my phone? I think I left it here.” There was a nod from Miyamoto’s wife from across the counter as she continued speaking on the phone, Oikawa closing his eyes and taking deep, calming breaths as he waited.

Oikawa felt someone brush against the back of the chair he was sitting on as they walked past, prepared to ignore them until he heard a scraping sound indicating that someone was pulling a chair beside him. Oikawa reluctantly opened his eyes, meeting a pair of familiar dark olive eyes that sent a wave of déjà vu throughout him, as the boy that had suddenly sat down in front of him continued to stare.

“What do you want?” Normally Oikawa would be politer, but in the current situation felt as if he had used up his reserves of politeness. That, and the fact there was something about the stoically faced boy in front of him that rubbed Oikawa the wrong way. The boy stared at Oikawa silently for several seconds, looking as if he were analysing every minute thing that he observed about Oikawa. Oikawa was about to snap at the boy to leave before his hand suddenly shot forward and grabbed Oikawa’s wrist.

“What are you-” Oikawa jerked his arm back, but the grip on his wrist was unexpectedly strong and the boy in front of him moved in response to Oikawa’s movement. Oikawa was about to start shaking his arm to get the grip off before he noticed something red out of the corner of his eye.

Heard the crackling noise that never failed to get his heart beat racing.

Oikawa completely forgot about the grip on his wrist as he hurriedly scanned the bakery in a panic, wondering what had gone wrong, wondering what had triggered his Revival, before he spotted a red butterfly on the edge of his vision. The butterfly was red?

“If you continue doing what you intend to do, you and your friend will both be dead this time tomorrow.”

“What?” Oikawa gaped at the boy in disbelief, feeling both panic and anger well up again as he tried to get a grasp of the situation. He felt the pressure on his wrist vanish as the boy in front of him released his hold.

“You’re going to die in less than 24 hours if you don't change the future,” the boy repeated, his face not even betraying a hint of emotion. A corner of Oikawa’s brain suddenly registered that the red butterflies that he had observed earlier had vanished. 

“The butterflies…are gone?” What was going on? It had been a good half a minute since he had since the butterflies. Oikawa was used to his Revival triggering almost instantaneously after the butterflies appeared. Blue ones, never red.

For the first time since they met, the expression of the boy in front of him changed. It was minute, not more than a slight widening of his eyes, but Oikawa could feel the boy’s shock.

“You can see them?”

“Of course I can!” Oikawa was about to add in another sarcastic retort before the déjà vu he felt earlier suddenly clicked, and he realised why there was something familiar about the boy in front of him. “You were the boy with the torch last night!”

The boy nodded once, attention focused on something behind Oikawa, before motioning with his hands for Oikawa to be quiet. “My mum is looking at us. Can we talk outside?”

“Your mum?”

“She’s standing behind you.”

Oikawa couldn’t resist the urge to turn his head, meeting the eyes of Miyamoto’s wife as she finished her call, the only person who was behind the table they sat at.

“I’m sorry Oikawa-kun, Miyamoto hasn’t seen your phone and he doesn’t know where your friend is,” she said, resting the phone on the counter. Oikawa had nearly forgotten that he had all but begged her to call Miya-san, his heart sinking at her response. 

“Thank you for trying.” Miyamoto’s wife nodded apologetically at Oikawa, before moving towards customers that had just entered the store. Oikawa turned to look at the boy beside him, confused by the turn of events.

“Miya-san’s your dad?” Oikawa asked, examining the boy in front of him closely, but not seeing any resemblance.

“My parents split up. My dad lives overseas.” The boy suddenly stood up, his glance at Oikawa indicating he wanted Oikawa to follow him outside. They ended up at a nearby park bench, the serenity of the park at odds with the maelstrom of thoughts going through Oikawa’s mind.

“Ushijima.” The boy spoke suddenly, his voice breaking Oikawa’s increasingly tangled train of thought.

“What?” Oikawa was thrown by the sudden change of topic, giving Ushijima a look of astonishment.

“I’m Ushijima. Ushijima Wakatoshi. I don’t believe I got your name.” Dark olive eyes met Oikawa’s head on as Ushijima waited for a reply.

“Is this the time?” Oikawa took a deep breath, definitely agreeing with his first impression that Ushijima rubbed him the wrong way before replying. He didn’t have the time for these kind of greetings, not when something could have happened to Iwa-chan. “I’m Oikawa. Tooru. What did you see? You can see the future right? What happened?”

Ushijima’s eyes narrowed slightly at Oikawa’s outburst. “How do you know I can see the future of people I touch?” 

“I don’t have time for that! You said that I’d be dead in 24 hours. You said that my friend would be dead too. That’s Iwa-chan right?” Now that Oikawa had a potential source of answers that he was so desperately wanting, he could not help the questions that came out. “Do you know where Iwa-chan is? Where’s Iwa-chan?” 

“I only see the outcome. I do not know how you got there.”

“ _What did you see?_ ” Oikawa’s voice was so high pitched it broke, he was this close to shaking Ushijima, did he not realise how important this was to Oikawa?

Ushijima frowned slightly, the only indication of his confusion regarding the vision that he saw. “There was a boy tied to a chair. I’ve never seen him before but he was screaming your name. There was more than one person screaming. And…. someone…was laughing. You were on the ground, and you were not moving.”

Oikawa picked up a hint of hesitation in Ushijima’s tone, the slightly tense way which Ushijima held himself. With every minute that past, Oikawa was getting more familiar with how Ushijima expressed himself despite his initial lack of emotion.

“And? What else? Did you know who laughed?”

“I don’t understand what’s going on,” Ushijima murmured quietly, almost as if he were just speaking to himself. “Why would he be there?”

“ _Who?_ ” Oikawa stood up, grabbing Ushijima’s shoulder. “ _Who has Iwa-chan?_ ”

“That laugh belonged to my stepfather,” Ushijima finally said, his intense eyes meeting Oikawa’s. “But if it belonged to him, that means that he’s involved?”

“Your stepfather? Oh my-” Oikawa felt tears welling up in his eyes as everything came together, the gaps in the puzzle finally crashing together, making sense in a truly horrifying manner. “Shit, SHIT!”

Oikawa last remembered using his phone at Miya-san’s bakery before he ran out in a hurry to relieve his cramping stomach. He had left it in the table in his hurry to find the nearest toilet.

Miyamoto had insisted that the different taste of the milk bread this morning was a result of a new recipe he was testing out. Oikawa hadn’t even needed to pay for the ‘new samples’.

“Shit, shit, shit!”

* * *

  _[11:10]_

“Calm down, we will find him,” Miyamoto said reassuringly, turning into another quiet street as Iwaizumi racked his brains for further places to look for Oikawa. But really, he had no idea. There was no doubt that with Oikawa’s complete lack of response to Iwaizumi’s calls that he was already in the clutches of the killer.

“What if we don’t?” Iwaizumi shot back, unable to contain the negativity that he was feeling. “What if I’m too late?” What if Oikawa were already dead, like the time that he had left him behind the very first time on that snowy day?

“You won’t find him if you’re panicking like that.” Miyamoto sighed, taking one hand off the steering wheel and reaching for the glove box. “There’s some water in there, drink some and _breathe_ , alright?”

Iwaizumi took a deep breath, hands shaking as he managed to open the glove box and pull out the mentioned water bottle.

“Just take a few deep breaths and drink, alright? You will see Oikawa again, I’ll promise you that. Just drink.” 

Iwaizumi took Miyamoto’s advice, feeling the rapid thumping of his heart rate slowing down as the cool liquid ran down his parched throat.

“Is that better?” Miyamoto made another turn as Iwaizumi drank, slightly surprised to see that the bottle was half empty. He had no idea that he had actually been that thirsty.

“Yes. Thank you.”

“No worries.” Miyamoto had a determined look in his eyes, his smile serene. Despite Iwaizumi’s newfound sense of peace, there was a niggling feeling in the back of his mind that he could not quite place. Iwaizumi felt himself jump slightly as a thumping sound came from the back of the car. 

“Did you hear that?” Iwaizumi swung his head around, his eyes scanning the back seat, and finally the car boot. He raised his eyes to the rear window, noting the unfamiliar scenery and feeling additional unease coming up.

Iwaizumi sunk down into his seat, feeling unsettled but unable to pinpoint the source of it.

“Where are we going?” Iwaizumi demanded, looking at Miyamoto. Miyamoto’s expression was still locked into that initial expression, eyes determined, mouth serene as he ignored the look that Iwaizumi gave him, and looked towards the road ahead.

“Hmm? You don’t recognise the area?” No, Iwaizumi definitely did not know where they were going, the ever reducing sight of nearby buildings and increased greenery foreign to him. Iwaizumi pulled out his phone again, Miyamoto looking at him curiously but making no moves to stop him.

“No.” Iwaizumi slowly moved his fingers across the relevant buttons on his phone, surprised at how difficult he was finding it. Had the buttons always been that hard to press? Iwaizumi’s head started feeling like it was stone, his head resting heavily on the seat behind him and he finally navigated to Oikawa’s contact number and pressed dial.

His phone definitely wasn’t that heavy was it? Maybe he’d just leave it on speaker, Iwaizumi didn’t have the energy to raise his mobile to his ear any more, and Oikawa was never quiet on a good day anyway.

The familiar dial tone echoed throughout the car. Really though, Iwaizumi felt as if he were hearing it ring from underwater…

Another muffled, but familiar soundtrack started playing. Star Wars. Really, Oikawa’s addiction to that movie was almost unnatural, and Iwaizumi was still forced to endure more Star Wars than he ever needed to outside of watching the movie itself. For one, Oikawa’s damn ringtone.

Iwaizumi rested his head against the window, the cool glass startling him for a second before he drifted back into the haze in his mind. Oikawa’s ringtone…

Why was that playing now at all times, that was weird….

The phone slid out of Iwaizumi’s grasp, falling to the ground with a soft clunk.

Another thump could be heard from the back, and Iwaizumi was not sure whether he was imagining that noise or whether it was real.

A small corner of Iwaizumi’s mind was screaming at him, screaming that _something was not right_ , that there were no longer moving along the road, and Miyamoto’s face was curious as he watched Iwaizumi struggle to remain conscious.

“Good night, young hero." 

The darkness felt light and free when Iwaizumi finally succumbed to its call, the last thing etched into his mind the sinister grin that Miyamoto now wore.

* * *

Ushijima was silent as he watched Oikawa pace, his hands fisted into his hair as he loudly brainstormed and panicked on what they were going to do next.

“Shit, shit, shit, what can we do? I’m useless unless somebody suddenly dies, you know?”

Oikawa kicked the thing nearest to him, a tree trunk.

“And I’d still need to be nearby for my Revival to work!”

“Oikawa, sit down.” Ushijima’s voice was quiet, but the seriousness and the complete no-nonsense tone he used made Oikawa pause for a second. It was the first thing Ushijima had said ever since they both realised that Miyamoto had been responsible for everything.

Oikawa silently plopped down on the bench, for once listening to Ushijima as the panic he felt threatened to consume him.

“We can’t just call the police and tell them that my stepfather has your friend, because we cannot explain _this_.” Ushijima slowly reached out towards Oikawa, grabbing his wrist once again and closing his eyes. Red butterflies flittered out the moment Ushijima made contact, Oikawa absently watching them twirl around the pair as Ushijima focused on the vision of Oikawa’s future he was watching.

“Anything?” Ushijima slowly pulled his hand back, shaking his head once at Oikawa’s question.

“Same location. The future I saw originally hasn’t changed.” The slight crease that appeared on Ushijima’s forehead was the only clear sign of his frustration that Oikawa could see. But Oikawa could also feel the frustration, as well as anger radiating off Ushijima. Despite Oikawa’s initial reluctance to get along with Ushijima at the start, the pair were temporarily united with the shared goal of catching Miyamoto. “I still don’t know _how_ that future was reached.”

“What can we do then?” Oikawa did his best to prevent himself falling into panic again, but it was difficult not to do so with the images that his mind conjured up. Iwa-chan hurt. Iwa-chan lying on the ground, unmoving. Iwa-chan was Oikawa’s world, and after what he had done for Oikawa, he was determined to repay the favour. 

No, Oikawa _would_ save him, just like Iwaizumi did with Oikawa.

“The future can always be changed,” Ushijima stated in a matter-of-face tone. “We just have to do something different, make different decisions.”

“Like what?” Oikawa could not help the pout that appeared on his face. Time was of the essence, and who knew what would happen next.

“What would you have done if you never met me at the bakery?” 

“If I never met you at the bakery?” Oikawa repeated, surprised. “I would, I would-”

What would he have done? What would he have done if he had found nothing at Miya-san’s bakery? The concept of that situation was so foreign to the anxiety that Oikawa currently felt that he was having trouble imagining it.

“I think I would’ve gone home,” Oikawa said slowly, forcing himself to think. He had to keep his mind clear for Iwa-chan. “Iwa-chan gets angry at me all the time so I’d have assumed that he went home.”

“And once you didn’t find him at home?” Ushijima prompted. Oikawa hated how calm Ushijima managed to look in this situation.

“I’d just assume he was avoiding me, until…” Oikawa looked away from Ushijima, remembering the times where Iwa-chan had in fact gotten so pissed that he had steadfastly refused to acknowledge Oikawa’s presence for an entire day. “Until later at night, because his mum would get worried. I’d only realise for sure something was wrong then.”

Ushijima remained silent as the pair continued thinking.

“I trusted Miya-san,” Oikawa said after several minutes of silence. “If he asked me to come with him, I would have then. I wouldn’t if I saw him again now though.”

“Oikawa, if he went up to you and told you to go with him otherwise your friend would die, you would go.” It was blunt and unfiltered, and the moment that Ushijima said it aloud, Oikawa realised it would be true. There were far too many ways in which Miyamoto would be able to get Oikawa too.

“That is our chance though,” Ushijima continued. Ushijima grabbed Oikawa’s wrist again, but this time Oikawa did not see any sign of the red butterflies that indicated that Ushijima was seeing a vision. “When my stepfather goes after you, that is our chance.”

“You want me to be bait?” Oikawa exclaimed, jumping up from the bench he was sitting on. “I knew it, you’re crazy! How do you expect that to work out anyway?”

“Your parents are already on high alert from the incident at the festival yesterday,” Ushijima said. “I can tell you are intelligent, but you are letting your emotions get in the way of your logical thinking.” Oikawa felt a wave of fury well up from within at Ushijima’s casual comment. He was about to retort in complaint, before Ushijima raised his hand to stop him.

“If you tell your parents that someone is following you, that you are scared, they will get the police to look after you. My stepfather should not be able to touch you then. Or you could bait him to try, and let the police deal with him.”

Oikawa rendered speechless at the idea, his mouth repeatedly opening and closing as he absorbed what Ushijima said.

“Would that work?” Oikawa finally said, slowly lowering himself back onto the bench.

“I cannot see your future any longer,” Ushijima said. “Something has changed.”

That was all Oikawa needed to hear. It was better than doing nothing. 

“How much time do we have?” Oikawa asked, unable to meet Ushijima’s eyes, his heart rate pounding in anticipation of his response.

“The time is the one thing I know for sure,” Ushijima began, pulling up his sleeve and glancing briefly at his watch. “10:30 in the morning, tomorrow. You are murdered as your friend is forced to watch.” 

* * *

  _[13:54]_

Iwaizumi felt light, light as if he were floating through a cloud. Occasionally there were moments where he no longer felt the sensation of drifting, and instead felt a hard pressure on his back. But before Iwaizumi could truly identify the pressure he was feeling, he was off drifting again in the darkness, lightly floating. Iwaizumi was not sure how long this dream-like state persisted before finally breaking away from the darkness, furiously blinking his vision into focus.

The blurriness in his vision persisted longer than he would have liked, Iwaizumi guessing the vague white squares that he could see were windows, and that he was in some kind of empty, but rather large room. Iwaizumi attempted to move his arms, but after restlessly tugging for several seconds realised they were tied down. 

Tied down? 

The sudden burst of panic that Iwaizumi felt finally removed all traces of blurriness in his vision, bringing the brightly coloured cable ties securing his arms to a wooden chair into stark focus. Iwaizumi confirmed that he was in some sort of empty warehouse, and that he definitely could not move off the chair he was on.

“Iwai….zu..mi?” The croaky voice came from behind him, and as much as Iwaizumi struggled he could not turn around to face the source of the voice, not that he needed to see their face to recognise the voice. 

“Ah, the sleeping hero is finally awake!” The loud voice echoed throughout the warehouse, accompanied by footsteps as Miyamoto came into Iwaizumi’s view. There was a broad grin on his face as he approached from behind, gently cradling Iwaizumi’s head in his hands. “It’s been far too long since I’ve had something to play with, and I’ve gotten so impatient that I’ll need to play with all my toys at once.”

Toys… 

Iwaizumi could see his terrified 10 year old face stare back at him from the reflection in Miyamoto’s eyes, eyes round, tears threatening to fall. His 20 year old mind was screaming at him, screaming all the facts that he had learnt over his various Revivals, screaming at his complete and utter _stupidity_.

Miyamoto always killed in sets of three.

But only two of them were here.

“WHERE IS HE?” Iwaizumi screamed, struggling against the bonds that tied him down, not caring that screaming his lungs out was definitely not the right course of action for this scenario. Iwaizumi was not 10 years old, and had not been for a long time. “WHERE IS HE?” 

But in the desperation of his situation, Iwaizumi felt like the helpless 10 year old that had learnt that his best friend was dead. 

It made no sense at all that it had never been Oikawa in the boot, but Michimiya. Where was Oikawa?

“I’m saving something special for you all,” Miyamoto whispered into Iwaizumi’s ear, grin appearing as Iwaizumi involuntarily shivered, chest still heaving from his recent yells. “You have all been very naughty children. And there is nothing more I hate than naughty children.”

Miyamoto stepped away from Iwaizumi, smiling patiently as Iwaizumi struggled to come up with an appropriate reply. “I could have bought Oikawa-kun with me at any time, but I feel like a good game of hide and seek, don’t you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super sorry for the delay on this!!! Life simply caught up with me, then I got pretty absorbed into other fandoms and went overseas for a while, so even though I had this chapter done in December I haven’t had time to go over it until now. This was actually my first time writing from Oikawa's POV, which was quite interesting to do. I also had no idea how to write Ushijima, so hope he turned out alright! 
> 
> Thank you all for your ongoing support and feedback, it really means a lot to me :) The next chapter definitely won’t take like 4 months or so to come out (major oops).


	12. (2004) Checkmate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for a bit of gore and violence, but nothing super explicit.

“Why don't we start with a little story?” Miyamoto paced around the warehouse slowly, each step deliberate, the smirk he wore clearly displaying the power he knew he held in the current situation. “I hear children like stories, it helps them to sleep, doesn’t it, Iwaizumi?”

Iwaizumi grit his teeth, breathing still harsh from the combination of shock due to knowing too much at once, and his complete worry for Oikawa. Oikawa was smart enough to realise something was wrong, but Iwaizumi was at an utter loss at how he thought Oikawa would react.

“Do you like bed time stories, Iwaizumi?” Miyamoto stopped pacing as he looked directly at Iwaizumi, waiting for a response. Iwaizumi stubbornly remained silent, Miyamoto letting out a sigh in response as he slowly stepped closer. “You are much too serious. Like Oikawa-kun would say, if you keep frowning that way you’ll get wrinkles you know?”

“Don’t talk about Oikawa,” Iwaizumi growled. He wiggled his wrists carefully, not wanting Miyamoto to see him struggle, but the cable-ties that kept his hands firmly tied to the sides of the chair he was on remained tight.

Miyamoto laughed again, a sickly kind of laughter that grated on Iwaizumi’s ears. “It’s alright, I’ll stop talking about dear Oikawa-kun for now seeing as you’re getting upset.” Miyamoto paused, looking contemplative for several seconds before looking at Michimiya. ”Yui-chan looks like she’s drifting off again.”

Iwaizumi could faintly hear Michimiya breathing behind him, each inhale sounding closer to one someone would have when they were badly sick. “No matter, this bed time story I’ve saved for you in particular, Iwaizumi, as you just seem to be always around whenever I wanted to have my fun.”

Miyamoto closed the distance between himself and Iwaizumi, delicately lifting Iwaizumi’s head up with rough fingers in a show of power. “I first noticed you when I was going after Matsukawa-kun. It’s weird, usually you guys split up after school. But then you didn’t.”

Iwaizumi could tell that Miyamoto was trying to stare him down until he either broke down from intimidation or begged for his life. Iwaizumi refused to give this bastard the satisfaction of doing either. The one advantage that Iwaizumi had was that Miyamoto would never guess that he was older than he appeared, that he was really a university student in a child’s body.

“I was so close that night, you know.” Miyamoto’s voice was a whisper, each breath tickling Iwaizumi’s ear unpleasantly as he edged even closer. “Matsukawa had taken my bait, fallen straight into my web. I was about to hide him away so I could have my fun for the night, you know?”

Miyamoto’s hands slowly trailed down to Iwaizumi’s neck, before stopping and wrapping themselves tightly like a collar. “Did you know there’s something enchanting about squeezing the thin neck of a child and feeling the struggle beneath your palms – watching the light fade from their eyes. How do you think it feels?” Iwaizumi felt Miyamoto’s grip around his neck tighten even further, struggling to force air down his throat. Tears started to well up in response to the pressure around his neck.

“That’s the feeling, Iwaizumi! I like the look in your eyes.” Miyamoto suddenly released his hold, and Iwaizumi involuntarily found himself gasping for breath like a beached fish. “Don’t worry, I won’t be strangling you any time soon. I think it’ll be more fun for you to watch, right? I normally don’t play around so much, but you’ve left me wanting so much more~.” 

“What is your problem? Why are you doing this?” Iwaizumi gasped between breaths, curious at Miyamoto’s motives and wanting to collect every minor detail so he could possibly manipulate his way out of the situation. He doubted that Miyamoto had simply been born with the urge to kill.

“My problem? I don’t find this a problem at all.” Miyamoto turned his back to Iwaizumi, letting out a short hum. “I have an issue with upstart children that think they know every single damn thing. When I learnt I had the ability to permanently shut them up it was like my world had finally lit up. We all have that one hobby that consumes us, that we would dedicate ourselves to.”

Miyamoto was comparing _killing_ to a hobby? Iwaizumi was disgusted at the very thought of something like murder placed in comparison to volleyball, and forced himself to move past his disgust to deal with the situation on hand.

“You work at the bakery,” Iwaizumi eventually coughed out, opting for a more neutral response. “If you hate children so much wouldn’t you have long since gone after one of us?”

Miyamoto let out a delighted laugh, clapping once as if Iwaizumi had finally answered a secret question of his correctly. “And therein lies the beauty of all this! I do enjoy a good challenge. And one of them was certainly holding back on the urges so I can properly savour them. Luckily, Wakatoshi is a quiet child whose head is buried in volleyball, so I hardly even saw him.”

Iwaizumi faintly recalled the mention of a stepchild in a conversation with Miyamoto, but had never paid much attention to it. He felt nearly sick at the thought of that child living on the edge of death daily, not knowing what kind of monster they were living with.

“But I’m done with this farce. Once I’ve had my fun with you three, I’ll vanish, lay low, and find a few others to have fun with.” 

This time Miyamoto approached Michimiya, disappearing beyond the boundaries of Iwaizumi’s peripheral vision. “Usually, I go for boys because they remind me of my wonderful, _smart_ , far more beloved little brother. But if there’s one thing girls do better than boys, it’s that their screams are truly delightful.”

Iwaizumi heard retching noises from behind him, craning his neck as far as he could to see what was going on, but try as he might he could not see exactly what Miyamoto was going to Michimiya.

All he could hope for was for Oikawa to realise something was wrong and help them before it was too late.

* * *

_[14:10]_

The local police station had barely registered any interest in Oikawa’s mind when he was younger, blending into the scenery of his everyday life as insignificant. Today, Oikawa truly registered its existence for the first time, and wondered how he had always taken it for granted. Oikawa’s hands were on his knees as he panted heavily outside the entrance, Ushijima taking similarly deep breaths beside him. Years of volleyball practice had failed to prepare the pair for the long, harsh sprint to the police station after all the pieces of the puzzle finally came together.

“We-we made it,” Oikawa gasped, stumbling over and leaning against the door. “Hu-hurry up, Ushiwaka, you’re slow.”

Ushijima gave Oikawa a subtle glance that said that he did not have the energy to try and respond to Oikawa’s insult. He pushed opened the glass doors with a sense of calm and collected purpose, a stark comparison to Oikawa who felt so sticky from the sweat on his body that it felt like honey. If Oikawa could, he would melt into a puddle right there at the entrance of the police station.

But Iwa-chan was depending on him. He had to save Iwa-chan! Oikawa did not know how to be properly afraid for him – there was a big difference between a fear of dying yourself, and a fear of someone else dying. Those were the two feelings Oikawa were torn between as he approached the counter, hoping that the police would take them seriously and find Iwa-chan. 

“Excuse me!” Oikawa put on his most charming smile, but internally cringed at how breathless and weak he sounded. Somehow, Iwa-chan could always make himself sound grown up.

“Are you looking for your parents?” The lady behind the counter put on a smile that was clearly forced, and Oikawa hated being looked down on.

“No! Last night I saw the kidnapper at the Pageant of Starlight, and I’m sure he saw us, and now Iwa-chan is missing!”

Oikawa could instantly sense the demeanour of the officer in front of him change as she registered what he said. “You’re Oikawa-san’s little brother, aren’t you?”

Oikawa nodded. He tried his best to calm down and not act too panicked. He would do this for Iwa-chan.

“And who is your friend with you?”

 Oikawa was about to interrupt that _no_ , Ushijima was not his friend and how dare you even consider the thought, but Ushijima beat him to the punch.

“I am Ushijima Wakatoshi,” Ushijima said in that annoyingly emotionless manner of his. “I am with Oikawa as I met him at my stepfather’s bakery, which was where Oikawa was meant to meet up with his…friend.” Oikawa could almost feel Ushijima’s embarrassment at the thought of casually saying Iwa-chan to the officer, further reinforcing his feelings about the boy. Iwa-chan was an excellent nickname, and there should be no shame in saying it aloud!

Ushijima continued without further glance at Oikawa. “My stepfather was not there, even though he said he was going to be working there today. It is unusual.” 

“Your stepfather?” the officer said sharply, rifling through her desk impatiently for several seconds before hurriedly scribbling on the first writable object she found.

“Miyamoto, from the bakery.”

“Miya-san?” The sound of astonishment in the officer’s voice echoed that of Oikawa’s less than an hour ago. Had it really been only that long since the truth that had so horrifyingly crashed into Oikawa?

“Yes, Miya-san,” Oikawa interrupted, not liking how Ushijima was taking over the conversation. “Iwa-chan and I agreed to meet there this morning, and I was originally early, but then I got a stomach ache and by the time I got back I was really late!”

Oikawa slapped his hand as hard as he could on the counter, ignoring the pain that suddenly lanced through his hand at the motion. “Miya-san gave me free milk bread, but I think he put something in it! It tasted funny, and I’ve never felt so bad before.”

“Are you meaning to tell me that you believe Miyamoto has your friend? I think it was Iwaizumi?”

Oikawa hesitated. Obviously he and Ushijima knew it was Miyamoto through the use of their powers, but they could not admit the true reason without sounding like lunatics. Oikawa found himself wishing that he could openly talk about his Revival, and Ushijima’s ability to foresee the future to a degree. It would make things so much less frustrating.

At that moment, Oikawa found himself giving Ushijima a pleading look, begging for him to say something sensible that would not be so easily dismissed. He hated that despite all his bragging to Iwa-chan and his classmates about being the smartest, he was at a complete and utter loss at what to do when it mattered. Even worse, Oikawa could feel the beginning of tears in his eyes as he rapidly lost control of the situation.

“Something is wrong,” Ushijima said. “Too many weird things have happened at once.”

“That’s true…especially after last night’s events.” The officer was silent for several seconds as she considered her options, before waving the boys over. “Come with me. I will call your parents, as well as Iwaizumi’s, and then we will figure out what we will do.”

“You’ll find him, won’t you?” Oikawa demanded. “Please! Iwa-chan is my best friend!”

The officer said something to him, likely as a reassurance, but Oikawa didn’t hear. All he could feel was self-loathing at his inability to help Iwa-chan. Was all he could do really just to sit around and wait?

* * *

“Is he gone?” Iwaizumi would have completely missed Michimiya’s whispered question had the warehouse not been completely silent, apart from the occasional sound of leaves landing on the roof.

“I hope so.” Even as he replied, part of Iwaizumi felt as if Miyamoto would suddenly jump out and exclaim a triumphant return.

“It-changed,” Michimiya croaked. Iwaizumi almost winced from the pain he could hear from her voice.

“Don’t speak if it hurts,” Iwaizumi said, filled with irritation at his utter uselessness in the current situation. Miyamoto had been right about the sheer torture it was to know that someone you cared about was being hurt, and you could do nothing but watch and listen to them suffer. Nothing in Iwaizumi’s experiences, from his high school or university days could have prepared him for such an experience.

“No. The future-it changed.” Michimiya gasped each word like it was her last. “F-felt it.”

Iwaizumi felt as if he had been electrocuted, sitting up straighter in his chair. “What did you see?”

“Remember…I only see what…was changed. The original…” Michimiya’s voice trailed off, replaced by a fit of coughing. Iwaizumi’s instinct was to ask if she was alright, but he almost laughed at the absurdity of the question. Of course Michimiya was not alright. Miyamoto had spent who knows how long repeatedly strangling her, but never quite letting her fall unconscious.

“So you won’t know what will happen to us?” 

“No. But I saw you…and Oikawa…dead…. here.” Iwaizumi felt his heart freeze from the shock of the statement. “So…that won’t happen.”

Iwaizumi had almost dared to hope that just maybe, things might turn out again before Michimiya dashed it again with her next words.

“But…it could also mean…we just changed how events happen.”

“Like, we die differently or something?” Iwaizumi grimaced as he pulled at the cable ties around his wrists slightly too tightly, causing it to chafe painfully around his wrist. Pausing in his movements, Iwaizumi could see that his movements had caused the cable tie to thin slightly.

“…Yeah.”

Iwaizumi sighed as he stared at the ceiling, wondering if there was anything he could possibly do to change the situation. It was definitely not in his nature to remain sitting around, helpless, and merely waiting for help to arrive. He recalled the tears and agony on Oikawa’s face the night before as they talked about dying, and angrily resolved to prevent that.

Iwaizumi was not a petrified ten year old child. Miyamoto, certainly, had the upper hand against a regular child. But Iwaizumi and Michimiya had both lived into their twenties, grown up, and first hand seen the tragedy of Miyamoto’s actions when they met the Oikawa Aimi of the future.

“Michimiya,” Iwaizumi said, breaking several minutes of silence after considering his next steps. “How tight are the cable ties around your wrist? Do you think it would be possible for you to break them?” 

Michimiya slowly twisted her wrists around, getting a feel for the tightness. “It might be looser than yours. I think I could get out of them actually.” Michimiya’s voice trailed off, Iwaizumi able to hear her deep breathing before she continued. “What are you thinking?”

“We’re not frightened children.” Iwaizumi slowly slid his arm along the chair handle as far as he could, ignoring each burn of the plastic against his torn skin and instead focusing on loosening the plastic of the cable ties. “We’re adults on the inside, so I’m just going force myself beyond any limitations that I may have had mentally as a child.”

Iwaizumi felt the warm liquid drip slowly down his arm as he forced as much of his hand through his bonds as he could and rubbed it along the handle of the chair to try and break it with friction. “This really hurts.”

“Iwaizumi?”

“I won’t stop.” Involuntary tears dripped out the corner of his eye. “We need to get out of here." 

“Iwaizumi, wait, I’ll try to get out first!” Michimiya coughed as her throat protested against the volume she was speaking at. With a pained cry, the cable tie on Iwaizumi’s right wrist finally snapped, freeing his arm.

“Do you have a bobby pin or something?” Iwaizumi stood up, awkwardly holding the chair with his left arm attached as he approached Michimiya. Michimiya’s face was dripping with sweat, her face ashen white, and Iwaizumi could see the blossoming dark bruises around her neck.

“In my hair, near my forehead.” A combination of both worry and hope was etched on Michimiya’s face as Iwaizumi came over. Iwaizumi spotted the thin black pin in Michimiya’s hair, trying to remove it out without accidentally pulling out some hair.

“It’s alright, just get it out.” Michimiya flinched slightly as Iwaizumi finally got the pin free, snagging a few strands of hair in the process. Iwaizumi forced the pin into the locking mechanism of the cable tie so the teeth of the plastic was no longer catching on the mechanism keeping it tight, before slowly loosening it apart and releasing his left arm from the chair.

Iwaizumi gave himself several seconds to enjoy the triumph of freedom before bending down and helping Michimiya get free. It took several tense minutes of fiddling before Michimiya was finally released. Michimiya gingerly felt at her neck with her freed hands, wincing at the soreness that she felt.

“How is it?” Iwaizumi could not keep the worry out of his voice and Michimiya slowly stood up.

“Hurts,” she smiled weakly, grabbing onto Iwaizumi for support. “Phone?”

A quick pat down of Iwaizumi’s pockets revealed a sad lack of a mobile device. “Don’t have it.”

“Let’s go then.” The pair headed in the direction of the entrance where they had earlier seen Miyamoto leave, the door pushing open with no resistance. Iwaizumi was forced to look away as the harsh sunlight shone directly into his eyes, the trees nearby doing little to block it out. He scanned his surroundings quickly, relieved that the only movements he was catching from the edges of his vision were the slow, swaying movements of the tree branches. The intense beating of his heart slowed slightly, just daring to hope that they could escape safely.

“Where are we?” All Iwaizumi could see was what appeared to be bushland on their left, and additional, likely empty warehouses to their right.

“We might be at the disused manufacturing plant near the edge of the city,” Michimiya replied, staring at a faded sign nearby with a frown of concentration on her face. “I remember them clearing this out sometime during high school to build a sporting area. It’s going to take us a while to walk back.”

“Doesn’t matter.” The feeling of hope Iwaizumi felt earlier intensified, from the combined triumphs of their escape, to coming up with a plausible plan for ending the situation. “We’ll get back, tell everyone what’s happened, and end this.”

Iwaizumi could imagine the massive smile that Oikawa only ever truly wore for him. He could almost feel the phantom sensation of a pair of thin, bony arms wrapping themselves tightly around his waist and not wanting to let go.

For once, Iwaizumi knew he would not be complaining at any idiotic thing that only Oikawa could do. If he ever saw Oikawa again, he would encourage every little idiotic thing just to see him smile and laugh again.

* * *

  _[16:00]_

“I can’t believe this,” Oikawa repeated, for possibly the tenth time in the last five minutes. “I can’t believe this. They can’t do anything because Iwa-chan hasn’t been _missing_ long enough?” Oikawa and Ushijima currently were sitting on hard plastic chairs, waiting outside the room where Oikawa’s and Iwaizumi’s parents were currently having a conversation with the police.

Oikawa’s legs swung repeatedly back and forth between the legs of the chair he was sitting on as he continued venting at Ushijima. “And now we’re stuck here too!”

“Can I check?” Ushijima seemed as immune to Oikawa’s behaviour as Iwa-chan was, his hand hovering over Oikawa’s wrist and pointedly ignoring his complains. Oikawa reluctantly nodded, hoping for anything to turn this messed up situation around.

Ushijima’s touch was warm and oddly reassuring as he held Oikawa’s wrist for several seconds. Oikawa could tell from the slight change in Ushijima’s face, even without the tell-tale butterflies as a marker of the activation of their abilities, that he was still seeing nothing. Clearly, once Ushijima had seen and changed one future, he would not be able to change anything happening near that time again.

“I’m sorry.” Oikawa did not want to hear that phrase come out of anyone’s mouth ever again. It was sickening, and it just constantly reminded Oikawa of his helplessness.

“Don’t say that,” Oikawa growled, “Don’t say that.”

“What do you think we should do, Oikawa?” Oikawa’s anger was replaced by surprise as he turned to meet Ushijima’s eyes and could see the sincerity in them. Ushijima looked serious about listening to any of Oikawa’s suggestions, and possibly even following them if he thought they were viable. 

“Miya-san is after me.” Oikawa closed his eyes to better concentrate, going through the logic one by one. “So he’ll want to find me, and the best place would be the bakery. If not the bakery, at my place.”

“He also doesn’t know that you know it’s him.”

“He doesn’t,” Oikawa agreed. “but we just told the police we suspect Miya-san…”

Ushijima searched through his pocket for several seconds before pulling out his phone and staring intently at the screen. “Mum just messaged me to tell me that Miyamoto is back.”

Oikawa’s mouth dropped open as he stared at Ushijima. “And?”

“He won’t be working at the bakery for the rest of the day, so if I’m heading home he’ll let me in.”

“He’s at home?”

“That’s what my mum thinks.” Ushijima’s tone of voice left no doubt as to whether he truly thought Miyamoto was at home.

“Do you think he bought Iwa-chan back with him? Like tied up in the car or something?” Oikawa’s voice broke just thinking of the situation, swimming in worry for Iwa-chan.

“I don’t so. I think it’s more likely for him to look for you, then bring you to where your friend is.”

It was annoying when Ushijima was probably right, but Oikawa unfortunately agreed with his opinion. Oikawa chewed his lower lip in annoyance, resuming the swinging of his legs again. He remained silent as he tried to think of what he could do next, tugging at his hair in frustration when he came up blank.

The door beside them suddenly opened, Oikawa and Ushijima looking up to the sight of several concerned adults. Oikawa felt simultaneous emotions of relief and impatience at seeing his sister, as well as Iwa-chan’s parents walk out, accompanied by an officer. 

“Tooru-kun, sorry for keeping you waiting.” Oikawa was startled when Iwa-chan’s mum suddenly bent down and gave Oikawa a tight hug, the flowery fragrance she wore reminding Oikawa of happier times teasing Iwa-chan at his place. “Hajime would never run off, so I will make sure they find him. Ok?”

Oikawa nodded silently. Finally, something was happening. They were looking for Iwa-chan. _Finally_.

“Thank you for always looking after him. Aimi-chan?” Iwa-chan’s mum gently pulled Oikawa away from the chair so Aimi could hold his hand tightly. Despite always protesting at any type of affection shown by his family in front of his classmates, there was something reassuring about the warm, sturdy handhold of his sister. Oikawa felt himself squeeze back.

“Tooru,” Aimi said quietly, her voice for once not lit up in her usual cheerful tone. “The police are sending out search vehicles. Hajime was not the only person to disappear.” 

“What?” Panic, the emotion that seemed to be an almost permanent companion by now, ran throughout Oikawa again. He thought back to all his friends, friends that Miyamoto was also friendly with and could easily lure in. Matsukawa. Hanamaki. Bokuto. Nakamura. Why was it, just when something seemed to go to plan, it fell apart the moment Oikawa dared to hope?

“Her name is Michimiya Yui. She disappeared sometime this morning as well, and with us reporting Hajime’s disappearance, the police are fearing it’s the same person.”

“Michimiya?!” It had to be Miyamoto, Oikawa was sure of it. Miyamoto had somehow caught wind of Michimiya’s involvement, and had probably decided it was best to silence the three of them. His hand shook against the firm hold of his sister’s, the tears that Oikawa had so valiantly tried to hold back threatening to fall again.

“I’m guessing you also know her,” Aimi said sadly, pulling Oikawa into a semi-hug against her torso.

“It’s Miyamoto,” Oikawa declared, remaining still against Aimi. “I’m sure it’s him. He was only nice to us all at the bakery so he could lure us in!”

“The police are looking for him now,” Iwa-chan’s dad interrupted. “We did not hear from Hajime again after he said he was heading to the bakery, and his phone has been turned off.” 

Oikawa pulled himself away from Aimi to fully look at Iwa-chan’s parents, whom he was so familiar with that they were practically like a second family to him. They didn’t laugh or dismiss anything he said as nonsense. They believed him, and would search as hard as Oikawa for Iwa-chan. The mere thought helped Oikawa to calm down slightly, as he turned towards Ushijima patiently observing the conversation in front of him. Oikawa quickly introduced Ushijima to his sister and Iwa-chan’s parents before slowly walking to the exit of the police station together. 

Oikawa paused when they reached the automatic glass doors, glancing between Aimi and Ushijima but unwilling to voice his concern about them splitting up as they farewelled Iwa-chan’s parents. He knew that Ushijima would eventually need to head home, but now that the moment was imminent Oikawa was strangely reluctant, despite his initial misgivings. Nor did he want Ushijima to actually realised he cared.

Aimi took one look at the stubborn set of Oikawa’s face before sighing, turning to face Ushijima. “Would you like a lift home?” The unspoken ‘because Oikawa is actually worried for you’ was clear in the look that Aimi threw Oikawa. Oikawa gulped, knowing that he would owe his sister for sure on this one.

“That would be great, thank you.” 

Oikawa was careful to linger behind his sister as they walked towards her car, giving him the opportunity to speak to Ushijima in a hushed whisper.

“What do we do now?” Oikawa had reached that level of desperation to willingly ask Ushijima for help.

“I’ll check if there’s any clue back at my place.” Ushijima slid into the back seat when Aimi opened the car door for him, Oikawa pausing for a second before deciding to join him. Aimi raised an eyebrow at his choice, making eye contact with Oikawa through the rear car mirror. Oikawa deliberately looked away, buckling himself in as Aimi started the engine.

“Where do you live, Ushijima-kun?” Aimi slowly backed the car out, turning the car onto the road. 

Oikawa tuned out as Ushijima gave his sister direct and clear directions to his place, feeling slightly irritated that it was fairly close to his place. He had a rather strong feeling that Ushijima was likely to reappear in his life with frequency if he had the opportunity to do so.

His mind drifted as the familiar scenery of Sendai blurred around him, Aimi speeding down the empty road. Now that Oikawa was no longer running around, frantically thinking, he could feel the exhaustion in both body and spirit as the day dragged on with no news from Iwa-chan.

Oikawa didn’t know how long had passed before it all changed in a split, horrifying second. Oikawa’s head smashed into the side window, the force of the impact coming from the right side of the vehicle pushing their car off the road and into the nearby field of grass. There was noise, noise everywhere, and Oikawa could not make out any individual noises as his surroundings turned into an unclear swirl. Maybe there was a scream, or a sound of crunching, or his head met something hard. His head hurt, he couldn’t see, and his mind was oddly blank once he registered they had stopped moving. Oikawa did not have the energy to see what had just happened, as if he were just an empty shell lying somewhere on the ground.

Oikawa remained in the same sprawled position, his consciousness only faintly aware of his surroundings. There was a constant, high-pitched noise in the background that was starting to hurt his ears – it was familiar, but at the same time everything felt so muddled that he could not quite make what it was. The noise suddenly cut off, accompanied by the feeling of something warm splashing onto his face.

Oikawa forced his eyes open, the painful throbbing of his head screaming at him to close them again when the sun’s rays seared into his eyes, but his mind was getting clearer and he needed to know what’s going on because something was wrong. His muddled brain at least, kept repeating that message, as he suddenly felt a hand grab at his ankle. 

Something was wrong. There was no way someone friendly would be trying to pull him out by his ankles. Oikawa roughly felt at his face, staring at his hand before the panic and the adrenaline came rushing back because _it was red, so red_ , and looking towards the front seat Oikawa screamed because there was so much red.

Oikawa kicked out furiously, attempting to loosen the iron grip on his ankle, knee hitting Ushijima’s unconscious face by accident. The hormones racing rapidly throughout his body shocked his concussed mind out of the daze he was in, and everything that was previously happening in a blur was crystal clear.

Oikawa was lying at an angle which forced him to bend his neck to see his surroundings, slightly tangled up in his seat belt which was somehow unbuckled. Miyamoto’s crazed face was grinning at him as he roughly tried to pull Oikawa out of the car, face flecked with blood.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Oikawa-kun.” Miyamoto’s voice was nothing like Oikawa had ever heard before, and there was a maniacal look in his eye that made Oikawa want to scream for his sister, anyone to protect him. Oikawa couldn’t make himself fully look at Aimi, knowing exactly what he would see in the puddle of blood, knowing the answer to what all that red was. Knowing what that high-pitched noise was, but not until it was too late.

Miyamoto finally managed to pull Oikawa free of the car wreckage, throwing Oikawa roughly into the biting cement of the road below. Tears dripped out of Oikawa’s eyes as his already throbbing head made contact with the ground, soft skin tearing against the rough edges of the cement. He could see Miyamoto approaching, a bloodied kitchen knife glistening in the fading sunlight.

“I don’t normally do things this way.” Miyamoto bent down, squatting on his knees as he examined Oikawa beneath him. “But your little friends somehow escaped – this whole thing is over for me.”

Iwa-chan had escaped? Relief and joy coursed throughout Oikawa’s body, enough that he could forget the pain he was in for just one second. A slight smile appeared on his face for a split second before the reality of the sharp blade in front of him washed that feeling away. Oikawa knew what would happen before Miyamoto dramatically announced it to him, his focus now on the shining blade coming closer.

“An eye for an eye. Your Iwa-chan ruined the years of effort I’ve spent building a life here, so I might as well kill his beloved best friend before I start anew.”

As Miyamoto turned to look back at the car wreckage, Oikawa heard a crackling sound, saw a familiar flash of blue, a flutter of wings. “Wakatoshi is collateral, but I might as well take him out as well. Guess in this instance, my experiment with him was a success.”

Miyamoto turned back towards Oikawa, and in that moment Oikawa knew the blade would come down – he just had to stop Miyamoto from killing him, just for a few seconds. The blade swung down, Oikawa was surrounded by blue butterflies, his hands were out defensively in front of his body, and he let out a scream as everything went black.

* * *

_[17:00]_

Michimiya froze mid-step and nearly stumbled on the grass they were walking on, Iwaizumi reaching out for her to prevent her from falling face-first.

“Michimiya?” Iwaizumi could not keep the exhaustion out of his voice as he continued to support her, hoping that somebody would drive by and take them to a more populated area of Sendai. They had long since abandoned the scenery of the abandoned warehouses and were able to walk along a relatively sheltered road back towards Sendai. This allowed them to attempt to flag down any passing vehicles that may pass by, whilst remaining hidden should Miyamoto drive by.

“Revival. Oikawa’s Revival just triggered.” 

“What?”

“Nothing happened with us, we were just walking as usual…we should be at the suburbs soon...” Michimiya’s voiced trailed off, and Iwaizumi knew she could not last much longer. But if Oikawa’s Revival had triggered, that meant someone had died near him. 

That death could quite easily be unrelated to him. But considering the circumstances, Iwaizumi was certain that it was not a coincidence. Oikawa was in danger. 

“We need to hurry.”

“Iwaizumi, what can we do?” Michimiya shook her hand out of Iwaizumi’s hold, sinking into the grass with a sigh. “We’re exhausted, we can’t go any faster, and we’re not going to run into anyone in the next five minutes or so. We don’t even know where he is.”

Iwaizumi opened his mouth to argue with her, but he knew she was right.

“I’m sorry, Iwaizumi. I’m sorry.” Michimiya cradled her head in her hands as she sobbed slowly, the events of the day fully catching up to her. 

Iwaizumi bent down to awkwardly pat her back, not entirely sure on the best way to comfort her. He had never been particularly talkative or dealt with many women whilst he was growing up. “Just a bit further, it’s nearly over.” Iwaizumi continued rubbing Michimiya’s back, not knowing if his actions were helping or not, but Michimiya made no move to stop him.

Iwaizumi remained in that position, even as pins and needles started to make their presence clearly known throughout his legs as a car suddenly braked near them. Iwaizumi looked up to be met with the sight of flashing blue and red lights waiting beside him, and it took several seconds for him to register it was a police vehicle.

They were safe. Another speeding police vehicle raced past them, sirens blaring, reminding Iwaizumi what whilst they were safe from Miyamoto, Oikawa was not.

“What’s going on?” Iwaizumi demanded, struggling to get up as his legs protested, the police officer in front of him reaching out and helping him out.

“You are Iwaizumi Hajime, correct? I’m Inspector Takeda. We just received a call from Oikawa Tooru-” 

“What happened?” Iwaizumi had no idea how long he and Michimiya had been walking for. Miyamoto would have had more than enough time to find Oikawa. Iwaizumi held onto Takeda like he was a life line, his expression pleading for answers.

“He was extremely distressed in the call. Oikawa was heading home with his sister when a car started speeding towards them with the intent to run them off the road.”

“And?”

The radio on Takeda’s belt crackled, Takeda listening to the brief message before frowning. “Get in the car, and tell me exactly what happened to you two.”

Takeda opened the back door, quickly helping Iwaizumi and Michimiya inside before turning on the sirens and driving at speeds that Iwaizumi had never seen before.

“What’s happening with Oik-”

“Iwaizumi, Michimiya,” Takeda interrupted, “I need to know what happened to the pair of you. Oikawa came into the station today to report you missing, Iwaizumi, and now it seems whoever went after the pair of you went after him.”

“Miyamoto, the baker,” Michimiya said quietly. “He caught me by surprise. I was out early this morning and he offered me something to eat. Next moment, I woke up in a car boot and no one heard me as I tried to yell.”

Takeda sighed tiredly as he turned sharply, tires squealing against the cement below. “So it was him. We only had circumstantial evidence at the time, so we could not outright arrest him earlier.”

Takeda quickly reported what Michimiya had told him into the radio, a quick confirmation blaring out before Iwaizumi noted what looked like a blockade ahead.

“What’s going on?” Iwaizumi unbuckled his seat belt, attempting to open the back door, only to find it would not open no matter how hard Iwaizumi tried. His adult mind was thoughtful enough to recall that the back doors of police vehicles would always be locked so criminals couldn’t just jump out of vehicles.

“We’ll sort this.” Takeda did not look back as he stepped out of the car, slamming the front door shut and leaving Iwaizumi and Michimiya clueless in the back seat.

“Dammit, I need to go and help him.” Iwaizumi punched at the glass angrily, frustrated at his inability to help.

“No Revival has been triggered yet,” Michimiya said quietly, head leaning against the softness of the head rest. “So no one’s dead yet. We’ve gotten a lot further than the first Revival, so Oikawa calling the police probably changed things and that’s how they found us.” 

“They’re not going to believe him if he says he just came back from the future and tells them that something is going to happen!” All the effort, the pain that Iwaizumi had faced just to save Oikawa, and now he was stuck in the back seat of a police vehicle unable to do anything but wait for news?

Laughter cut through the relative quiet of the vehicle they were in, and even from this distance Iwaizumi could recognise the voice. Iwaizumi felt chills running throughout his body as he imagined what would cause Miyamoto to laugh in such a matter, and each thought always went back to Oikawa.

Several gunshots suddenly rang out, echoing eerily in Iwaizumi’s ears for several seconds before his eyes widened with horror. Michimiya mirrored his expression as they desperately tried to find an angle where they could see what was going on, but failing. Miyamoto’s laughter had stopped, and it was likely that the police had shot him down, but all Iwaizumi cared about was Oikawa.

Iwaizumi banged on the car window, hoping that _anyone_ would walk past and just tell him what the hell was going on. Several seconds later Takeda returned with what looked to be a paramedic, opening the car door.

“It’s all over,” Takeda announced, hovering near the door and clearly knowing that Iwaizumi would have attempted to run out if he had not been nearby. “This is Hoshino-sensei – she will be taking you both to the hospital to be treated for any injuries you may have.”

“What happened? What just happened?” Iwaizumi demanded, Michimiya behind him nodding in agreement.

“As you may have heard, we shot Miyamoto.” Takeda’s expression darkened as he recalled the scene that had played out in front of him. “He had driven the Oikawas and his own step-son off the road – somehow he had pulled Oikawa Tooru out of the car and used him as a hostage. He was also screaming about the pair of you escaping from him, and how he hoped that you’d both get lost in the forest and…not return.”

“What?” Iwaizumi could only imagine how scared Oikawa would have been, recalling the terrified, sobbing Oikawa the night before discussing what it was like to die. 

“He’s fine, he was unconscious the whole time. I’m hoping he’ll wake up with a friendly face nearby and realise that everything is all over.”

“I can see him?” Iwaizumi felt the weight of fear and exhaustion disappear at the thought of seeing Oikawa again, knowing that he was finally safe. Iwaizumi was going to grow old with Oikawa together, they were going to play volleyball together, the whole world was open to them. “I can actually see him?" 

“Follow me.” Hoshino motioned at Iwaizumi and Michimiya to follow her as she weaved her way through the crowd of officers blocking the road, heading towards the vehicle at the back. Iwaizumi spotted a second ambulance where Aimi was currently being loaded into the vehicle, lying on a white bed. She looked to be conscious and talking to the paramedic helping her, and Iwaizumi was relieved to see that she appeared relatively unhurt.

Iwaizumi focused his attention on the other ambulance, and recognised the small, still figure on the bed to be Oikawa. His legs moved of their own volition, running forward and not caring that there were swarms of people around him. Iwaizumi’s gaze was focused solely on the individual lying underneath the blankets, brown hair a tousled mess from where it poked out from under the bandages wrapped around his head.

“Oikawa!” Iwaizumi yelled, not caring that Oikawa probably wasn’t awake to hear him. “Oikawa!”

Iwaizumi scrambled into the vehicle, unable to tear his gaze away from Oikawa as he gently touched his sleeping face. At least in the depths of slumber Oikawa looked free of the worries and fears that he had been carrying, but Iwaizumi still felt he looked so small in contrast to the bed he was resting in. Michimiya stepped into the vehicle several seconds later, smiling gently at Iwaizumi as he fussed over Oikawa. 

“I’m happy for you.” Michimiya was still smiling as she sat down with a sigh of relief, leaning her head against the interior of the vehicle.

“It’s all over,” Iwaizumi whispered, almost as if to reassure himself of the fact. “It’s over.” With Oikawa surviving and thus never passing on his Revival ability to Iwaizumi, Iwaizumi knew he would be stuck growing up again and reliving his childhood. But he didn’t care, as long as he could be with Oikawa. 

“I-Iwa-chan?” Oikawa’s eyelids fluttered open slowly as he scanned the ambulance, quickly clutching Iwaizumi’s wrist. “What-what’s going on? Miyamoto-” 

“-is gone for good, Oikawa.” Iwaizumi’s eyes met Oikawa’s, watching the moment that Oikawa’s eyes widened in surprise. “You were knocked out for it all, but he’s gone, and you’re safe, and I’m safe.”

“I was so scared for you, Iwa-chan.” Fat tears dripped out the corner of Oikawa’s eyes as his chest started shaking. Oikawa attempted to wipe away his tears, but Iwaizumi chuckled, knowing exactly what Oikawa was trying to do.

“You’re an ugly crier no matter what you do, Oikawa. Stop trying.”

“You’re so mean, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa pouted between sobs, but the smile on his face betrayed his true emotions.

Iwaizumi hugged Oikawa as well as he could with Oikawa lying on his back, surrounded by a cocoon of wires and blankets. Oikawa’s warmth was reassuringly real and comforting after the ordeal that was today, and Iwaizumi almost didn’t want to let go of him ever again. 

“Of course I’m mean, Oikawa.” Iwaizumi let out a snort of amusement. “Someone has to baby sit you and make sure you behave.”

The banter was so _normal_ and a part of Iwaizumi’s regular routine that he finally dared to imagine the kinds of trouble that he would get up to with Oikawa in the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> …And we’re finally done with the main story! Thank you for sticking around with me this long even with the slower updates towards the end, and I appreciate each and every kudo and comment I get! This is quite different to how the original Erased ended, but honestly I was not a big fan of the whole time skip thing going on there and I just wanted to avoid that ending altogether. And well, I want Oikawa and Iwa-chan to grow up together and be happy :D
> 
> Next chapter will just be a nice, short epilogue so our poor suffering babies finally can have some joy.


	13. (2011) Reunion

“Trust Oikawa to be fashionably late after we win,” Hanamaki snorted in amusement, Matsukawa beside him nodding sagely in agreement as nearly the entire Seijou volleyball team sat crowded around one, small round table. Iwaizumi sighed, finding himself readjusting his positioning on the hard, plastic chair he was sitting on, eying the glistening cakes they were surrounded by out of the corner of his eye.

His stomach growled, and as vice-captain, Iwaizumi was also certain it was growling on behalf of the entire team. He was fairly tempted to just cave into temptation and team expectation and order everyone to get what they wanted, Oikawa be damned, when the door of the cake store opened with the tinkling of bells, and Oikawa finally entered with the dramatic flair that only he could pull off successfully.

“Look Takeru, they’re such a faithful team, waiting for their captain to arrive before ordering!” Oikawa practically sang as he pushed his nephew Takeru into the store first. Takeru threw Oikawa an unimpressed look as he walked in, looking at his surroundings warily. A smile appeared on Takeru’s previously blank face the moment his gaze landed on Iwaizumi shuffling uncomfortably on his chair.

“Uncle Hajime!” Takeru yelled in delight, racing over towards Iwaizumi, and jumping onto his lap. “Tooru was late picking me up, and he walks so _slow-_ ”

“I was waiting for you,” Oikawa screeched, his expression instantly changing to one of betrayal as he threw Iwaizumi a dirty look.

Iwaizumi shrugged, helping Takeru get more comfortable in his lap before turning to face Oikawa and giving him his most neutral expression. “That’s what you always say. I’m more inclined to believe Takeru.”

“Stop stealing my nephew from me!”

“I ran away from you, Hajime didn’t steal me at all.” Takeru stuck his tongue out at Oikawa, Oikawa bristling with mock-anger.

“Why you little-”

Iwaizumi couldn’t help the chuckle that slipped out as Oikawa and Takeru continued to bicker, smiling as he felt the warm, comforting emotions of affection swirl within him. It was always when Iwaizumi was in the comfortable bubble of bickering that he found himself reflecting on the events in his life, and how truly lucky he was to have the chance to grow up again, this time experiencing the highs and lows that any standard teenager would face.

In a way, Iwaizumi also felt like a doting parent too – helping Oikawa to study and pass his entrance exams to both Kitagawa and Seijou, watching Oikawa persist until he finally landed his first jump serve, training together, winning and losing together, pretty much just being figuratively attached to Oikawa by the hip with the amount of experiences they shared. Sometimes Iwaizumi could apply his knowledge of the future and the additional studies that he had done during the first time he grew up to make things easier – Iwaizumi was not ashamed to admit he always got a sense of satisfaction beating Oikawa in academics. Other times he was buried as deep in the challenge as Oikawa, experiencing something new for the first time and always ending up competing some way or another.

For one, learning how to handle and take care of Takeru with Oikawa, figuring out how to keep the baby content, and watching him grow up from a screaming baby to a curious toddler. Iwaizumi felt almost as attached to Takeru as he did Oikawa, remembering the very events that had given him the opportunity to go back and save Oikawa from Miyamoto. Takeru had pretty much been Miyamoto’s final victim, his entire childhood stolen, and saving Oikawa had also given Takeru the joyful childhood he never had the first time around, as well as two, extremely overprotective uncles.

Iwaizumi was not sure he could get much happier. He now had his best friend, he had a strong passion to engage himself with in volleyball, and a clear dream of winning the Inter-High with Oikawa.

Iwaizumi untangled himself from his thoughts when he registered that the bickering was long since over, the rest of the Seijou team now crowding around the glass displays. Oikawa had a knowing smirk on his face as he crossed his arms, the lone Seijou team member not to have approached the cakes.

“You’re a sentimental old sap, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa declared cheekily, pulling out his tongue. “I can see adult Iwa-chan in there overthinking as usual and using his knowledge of the future to his unfair advantage.”

“Says the person who still keeps asking about future Star Wars movies.”

Oikawa rolled his eyes, but made no effort to deny Iwaizumi’s statement. “I’ll stop asking in three years time when you’re forced to live the future not knowing what happens just like the rest of us.”

“You honestly would not care about that if it weren’t for the fact that I keep beating _you_ in class-” Oikawa took a deep breath, preparing himself for a tirade as Takeru, still on Iwaizumi’s lap, looked between the pair like a spectator in a soccer match.

“Guys, can you please not give each other goo-goo eyes or something, us singles don’t need to be exposed to your flirting.” Matsukawa and Hanamaki returned carrying a tray full of cakes, deliberately standing between Oikawa and Iwaizumi wearing identical faces of mischief. “There are minors around.”

“You guys are one to talk,” Iwaizumi retorted, Oikawa nodding furiously in agreement. “Do I need to remind you that you have _permanently_ stained the flooring of the-”

“Ok ok, mighty vice-captain, your point has been made,” Hanamaki declared, taking a step back. “We’ll just grab our own table and eat away happily and you two can do whatever you want to, whether it be sucking each other’s faces off or-”

“Just go,” Iwaizumi growled as the pair cackled, Matsukawa throwing a quick wink before moving away.

“I want some cake too,” Takeru whined, the pout on his face identical to the ones that Oikawa could throw. Hell, even the tone was reminiscent of Oikawa’s.

“One cake only, Takeru. Your mum will kill me otherwise.” Oikawa lifted Takeru off Iwaizumi’s lap, pulling him over towards the cake displays, but with an unexpected gentleness to his movements. Oikawa’s face was animated as he no doubt gave Takeru cake recommendations, taking his job as uncle seriously. It was a sight that never ceased to make Iwaizumi smile. Despite Oikawa’s constant displays of immaturity, he would always at least be mature when it counted the most.

“Iwa-chan, aren't you going to get some cake too?” Iwaizumi stood up from the plastic chair with a slight groan as he stretched his legs, meeting up with Oikawa and Takeru as they were finishing up purchasing their selected cakes.

Oikawa’s phone suddenly buzzed in his pocket, and the pleasant expression on his face turned into one of annoyance as he read the new message he had just received. “Of course, Ushiwaka decides to rub his previous victories in. _Good luck, Oikawa, may the best team win_. Sure.”

Iwaizumi raised his eyebrow at Oikawa’s poor impersonation of Ushijima. “You kept Ushijima’s number?”

“It’s not like I can stop him having my number!” Oikawa retorted as he shoved his phone back into his pocket, turning away from Iwaizumi and walking back to their table with some milk bread. However, Iwaizumi knew very well why Oikawa had kept Ushijima’s number, and even replied to him on occasion in a mostly-civil manner. No matter how many times they had painfully lost to Shiratorizawa over the years, it had been Ushijima that day seven years ago that had caused Oikawa to realise the truth about Miyamoto, changing the original course of events. A debt like that was too large to ignore, and thus Oikawa regularly kept in contact with Ushijima. Ushijima too, Iwaizumi recalled, was as much a victim to Miyamoto as they were. His close family had been torn apart that day, his mother a shattered wreck at the realisation of whom she had been living with for years.

The door of the cake store opened again with a twinkle, Michimiya stumbling forward as she took several deep breaths, clearly having run over in a hurry.

“I’m sorry I’m late guys,” she panted, heading over to Oikawa first and giving him a tight hug before turning to Iwaizumi. “Had a few things to deal with back at school.”

“That’s because you’re at Karasuno and you’re stuck with the lunatics like Tobio-chan and Chibi-chan,” Oikawa complained, taking a rough bite from his milk bread and spraying the crumbs everywhere. “You should’ve gone to Seijou with us!”

“Oikawa, just grow up,” Iwaizumi sighed, Michimiya laughing in response. His hands, ever ready, curled up into a fist in anticipation of punching Oikawa if things went too far.

“Oikawa-kun, Karasuno is full of surprises as you very well know.” Michimiya slid into a free chair, her eyes lighting up with challenge and passion as she spoke. “Just because you beat Karasuno to make the Inter-High playoffs doesn’t mean you’ll always win. You shouldn’t let down your guard, you know?”

Iwaizumi decided that this was the opportune moment to strike, giving Oikawa a quick punch to the arm to prevent him from replying immaturely in kind. Oikawa’s pout as he rubbed his sore arm was adorable as it was annoying, identical to the very same pouts he gave over the years.

“I’m sorry, Oikawa’s maturity is the same as it was when he was ten, so don’t listen to anything he says.”

“Iwa-chan, stop being so rude!”

Michimiya laughed again as she stood up, a smile on her face. “You two never change. Always arguing, but I can see the love you have for each other when you look into each other’s eyes.”

Oikawa’s face turned red as he took another bite from his milk bread, remaining silent. Iwaizumi snorted.

“I’m only staring at Oikawa to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid.” Contrary to what he said, Iwaizumi’s heart fluttered, recalling the nights stealing kisses, pulling out some of Oikawa’s most genuine smiles, and just enjoying each other’s company. Precious moments where Oikawa would only open to him, whether it be in joy, or also moments of sadness.

“Whatever you say, Iwaizumi.” Michimiya turned to move away, but paused to deliver one last message. “By the way, I wish both of you the best of luck in defeating Shiratorizawa. If Karasuno weren’t going to make it to Tokyo, at least I hope you two will. You’ve fought for it for so long.”

“Yui-chan, we’ll do our best!” Oikawa hi-fived Michimiya as she walked past, her stomach grumbling audibly. 

It was in these small moments when Iwaizumi could observe the carefree joy and happiness of those around him, particularly Oikawa, that he truly felt the impact of his actions going back in time. The fear, suffering, and the pain had all been worth it if he could keep seeing Oikawa smile, one day at a time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so we are officially done, just with a short epilogue of everyone happily grown up :) Thanks again for reading!


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